Give Your Clothes a Second Life
It’s surprising to know that about 85% of used clothing and textiles in the U.S. end up in landfills or incinerators. This leads to a significant amount of clothing waste and environmental damage. Fortunately, the other 15% of used clothes get reused or recycled, which is a step towards a circular economy for textiles.
Recently, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) wrote a report based on a three-day workshop in September 2021 called “Facilitating a Circular Economy for Textiles” to develop effective strategies to tackle this issue of textile waste. The workshop brought together various stakeholders like manufacturers, recyclers, policymakers, and major fashion brands who have a shared goal of increasing circularity in the textile industry. The aim is to promote the repeated reuse, repair, and recycling of materials and to discard them only as a last resort, which is what a circular economy is all about.
Textiles can be defined as clothing, shoes, bedding, towels, upholstery fabrics, and carpeting, with discarded clothing taking the cake by being the most prominent in the municipal waste stream, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In 2018, a study found that about 47 kilograms (103 pounds) of textiles were thrown away per person. Now that’s a lot of clothing!
Donating used clothing is a great way to give them a second life, but even clothes that are worn out or seem too old can still be recycled. For example, Star Wipers can use your old clothing for good to make industrial rags. Your discarded clothing can also be transformed into stuffing for furniture or even recycled back into new textiles. Just head on over to your local textile recycling drop-off center!
As mentioned in the report, businesses and governments could introduce better sorting and grading technologies, advanced labeling and digital product identification, advanced recycling processes for certain synthetics, and more to address this issue.
So, next time you think about getting rid of your clothing or unwanted textiles, remember that they could be given a second life, and donate them to your local thrift store or textile recycling center. Let’s work together to increase circularity in the textile industry and reduce textile waste.
Learn more about NIST by visiting their website.