Textiles Recycling
Textiles describes items made from fabric such as sheets, curtains and clothing. These items can be made from different sorts of fibres, for example animal fibres such as wool or silk; vegetable fibres like cotton or linen; or mineral which are man-made or synthetic fibres, for example lycra, nylon or polyester. In the UK, we throw away 3/4 million tonnes of textiles a year. At present it is estimated that 6% (by weight) of the domestic waste stream consists of textiles. The recycling of textile materials in the production of woollen fabric can mean an energy saving of up to 50%.
Of all collected textiles 38% is used as second hand clothing, 21% is made into cloths for wiping, 19% is used as stuffing, 12% has its fibres reclaimed and made into something new, 6% gets thrown away and 4% is used again as second hand shoes.
Most UK clothing material is collected using the bank system and from charity shops, and some is collected door-to-door. There is still a market for second hand clothing in the UK but this is being stretched more and more as clothing levels for export to Eastern Europe, Africa and the Middle East have risen. Many sorting operations have been forced to move their businesses abroad to remain competitive, and here in the UK the problems have also been confounded over recent years by the mushrooming of cheap clothing shops. This has had the effect of discouraging people from buying second hand textiles, and because of the lower quality of cheaper clothing the standard of textiles coming through into the second hand market has dropped.
Helping the environment
Clothing put into the dustbin will end up either going to landfill or being burnt in an incinerator. It is estimated that in the UK our clothing has approximately 70% of its useful life left when we actually throw it away, so it makes no sense at all to put it in the rubbish bin. It's well known that the chemicals used to dye clothing can cause contamination to the watershed - another good reason to recycle rather than throw away. The energy required to produce a tonne of textiles is ten times more than the amount of energy required to make a tonne of glass.
Recycling cloth and textiles saves energy and reduces pollution caused by transportation, and in particular, recycling really helps by saving water, which is used in large quantity to wash and treat raw cloth.
Most UK clothing material is collected using the bank system and from charity shops, and some is collected door-to-door. There is still a market for second hand clothing in the UK but this is being stretched more and more as clothing levels for export to Eastern Europe, Africa and the Middle East have risen. Many sorting operations have been forced to move their businesses abroad to remain competitive, and here in the UK the problems have also been confounded over recent years by the mushrooming of cheap clothing shops. This has had the effect of discouraging people from buying second hand textiles, and because of the lower quality of cheaper clothing the standard of textiles coming through into the second hand market has dropped.
Helping the environment
Clothing put into the dustbin will end up either going to landfill or being burnt in an incinerator. It is estimated that in the UK our clothing has approximately 70% of its useful life left when we actually throw it away, so it makes no sense at all to put it in the rubbish bin. It's well known that the chemicals used to dye clothing can cause contamination to the watershed - another good reason to recycle rather than throw away. The energy required to produce a tonne of textiles is ten times more than the amount of energy required to make a tonne of glass.
Recycling cloth and textiles saves energy and reduces pollution caused by transportation, and in particular, recycling really helps by saving water, which is used in large quantity to wash and treat raw cloth.
Helping the economy
Job creation and support rather than 'hand outs' significantly improve both local and national economies. And so with textile recycling the UK national and local economies receive a boost as many hundreds of regular fully recompensed jobs are created.
Job creation and support rather than 'hand outs' significantly improve both local and national economies. And so with textile recycling the UK national and local economies receive a boost as many hundreds of regular fully recompensed jobs are created.
