A new report by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, entitled ‘Pushing the Boundaries of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) policy for textiles’, says that more than 80% of textiles “leak out of the system” when they are discarded.
In order to fix the “leaky system’ to tackle textile waste worldwide, the report sets out why mandatory, fee-based EPR is necessary to build a circular economy for textiles on a global scale with “unprecedented collaboration across governments” required.
Valérie Boiten, Senior Policy Officer at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, said: “Around the world, over 80% of textiles end up incinerated, landfilled, or leaking into the environment when they are discarded. This is a direct result of our wasteful, linear economy.
“A circular economy is the only solution that can match the scale of the global textile waste problem and Extended Producer Responsibility policies are an important part of that, yet it remains underutilised.
“EPR can support a circular economy across borders, by contributing funding for the collection and management of discarded textiles in those countries where they ultimately end up.
“This report explores the next frontier of EPR policies and highlights the huge potential which can be achieved by focusing on circular outcomes, such as repair and other circular business models, as well as circular product design.”
Other key points covered in the report include:
- Funding is essential to cover the net cost associated with managing all discarded textiles and not just those with a high market value.
- Collection infrastructure for textiles is underdeveloped, with separate collection rates averaging 14% and reaching a maximum of 50%.
- More than 80% of reusable clothing collected is exported after sorting, creating a disproportionate waste management burden on importing countries.
Chellie Pingree of the US Congress said: “Textile waste is a significant contributor to the climate crisis. But right now, we don’t have sufficient infrastructure to responsibly manage discarded clothing and increasing amounts of textile waste, and our existing systems do not support consistent, convenient, or widespread collection needed to incentivise the reuse and recycling of textiles.
“That’s why we need comprehensive policy to make the economics work for textile reuse, repair, and recycling. Particularly, EPR offers an opportunity to do just that while holding the textile industry responsible for its role in the system.”
Oliver Boachie, Special Advisor to Ghana’s Minister of Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation, added: “Ghana has a thriving reuse economy, in which Ghanaians regularly purchase used clothing and use the services of local repair businesses.
“However, our reuse economy also generates waste, as items eventually become nonreusable and are discarded. We are developing an EPR policy for plastics, which will be expanded to textiles and other material streams over time.
“The common approach proposed in this report is certainly in the right direction, and I expect that all countries will pursue a minimum level of alignment with the approach. To eliminate textile waste, countries at both the import and export ends of the used textiles trade must collaborate more closely.”
