The environmental association Cero indicated this Saturday that only six, out of 35 clothing brands evaluated, are partially assuming their responsibility for the generation of textile waste, for which reason they called for an urgent extension of the responsibility of producers in this sector.
These are the results of an analysis that Zero — Associação Sistemas Terrestre Sustentável — carried out in the online stores of 35 major clothing brands, as part of the European week for waste prevention, dedicated to textiles, which revealed that only six brands (17%) report having collection initiatives for recycling.
In a statement, the ecologists stress that “although recycling is far from being the main solution for this sector, it is worrying to see how most brands still do not assume their share of responsibility in managing this stream of waste that, only in urban waste, it represents 3.45% of the total waste collected”.
According to the Annual Urban Waste Report, in 2021, 176,400 tons of textile waste were collected by urban waste management systems.
“It is a worrying figure, but it represents only part of the problem, since textiles selectively collected by non-profit entities are not included here,” considers the association.
Zero considers it urgent to apply an adequate approach to the extended responsibility of the producer (RAP) to the sector of the texts, in order to guarantee that “it is the one who places the product in the market that finances the system of routing and treatment of the waste when they arrive at the end of the his life”.
However, we cannot have a PAR based solely on ‘pay to pollute’. It is essential that the focus is on reducing production, promoting durable/reusable/repairable textiles and ensuring that their production is also done with upcycling in mind, that is, recycled fiber that can be used to make new textiles”, he pointed out. .
Given that the selective collection of used textiles will be mandatory in 2025 throughout the European Union, and that “this collection only makes sense within the scope of the application of extended producer responsibility, it is urgent to guarantee the legal framework that allows the sector to circulate”, defends Zero.
In order to change the paradigm of production and consumption and increase reuse and recycling in the textile sector, Zero defends that it is essential to establish clear objectives for reduction, reuse and recycling, autonomous from each other; measures (such as eco-modulation) that economically discourage production in quantity, low quality and difficult recyclability; minimum criteria of durability, repairability and recyclability, which if not respected would prevent the sale of the textile product.
Zero also recommends setting percentages to allocate part of the eco-value to reusing textiles, creating a good collection network, recycling in a closed system (fiber by fiber), pre-export classification of textiles, transparency in the processes and access of the social sector to second-hand clothing.
According to European data, there are 5.8 million tons of textile waste per year in the European Union (EU), which corresponds to about 11 kg per person/year.
According to the characterization of waste in mainland Portugal, textiles represent 3.45% of urban waste and, according to data from the latest Annual Urban Waste Report (RARU 2021), only in that year 176,400 tons of this type were collected of waste.
At a European level, the textile sector is the 4th with the greatest impact on the environment and climate change and the 3rd with the greatest use of water and land resources.
“It is important to take into account that 80% of the impacts occur outside the EU. It is increasingly based on non-renewable sources —such as polyester, which is a fossil resource— and is one of the main sources of release of microfibers (synthetic fibers)”, highlights the association, which calls for a conscious use of textiles, reducing the purchase, maximizing use, donation, barter or sale, and always favoring the most renewable materials possible.
Source: Observadora
