Over 200 tons of old clothes: German textile waste mountains abroad!

Over 200 tons of old clothes: German textile waste mountains abroad!

In an alarming trend, over 200 tons of old clothes from Iceland are shipped to burn abroad. This practice raises important questions regarding the textile waste and their effects on the environment. According to iceland Review , the alpine republic suffers from a lack of effective recycling solutions for product. has.

A large part of the old clothes that are no longer worn ends either in the waste incineration or is disposed of in other ways. This corresponds to a general trend in many European countries, whereby 1.3 million tons of clothing are being thrown away in Germany, often without the possibility of recycling. According to taz adults in Germany have an average of 95 items of clothing, but many are rarely used.

The challenges of the old clothing recycling

The EU has put an old clothing regulation in force since the beginning of the year, which says that old textiles may no longer be disposed of in household waste. This regulation aims to promote the reuse of fibers, but faces many challenges. It is often the case that fabrics consist of mixed materials that are not easy to recycle. In addition, the sorting process requires manual work, which restricts the efficiency of recycling.

Despite the established regulations, only 1 percent of the old clothing is currently being recycled in the EU member states. Many companies report an overproduction of recycled material, while the demand from industry remains low. The situation is tightened by the fact that the operator of clothing containers fear that only a little of the collected textiles will actually be used.

The global environmental impact on the textile industry

The textile industry is one of the main causes of pollution, even more than international flight and shipping. It is responsible for 20 percent of worldwide water pollution, and about 2,700 liters of sweets are necessary to produce a single cotton t-shirt. Against this background, it is all the more regrettable that many items of clothing end up in the trash instead of being used or recycled.

The initiative of waste disposal companies for the development of new technologies for sorting old clothes is crucial. The Fair Rating Association emphasizes the importance of recycling and demands that manufacturers design their products so that they can be recycled more easily.

Recycling and the recycling of old clothes are essential steps to relieve the environment and ensure the necessary sustainability in the textile industry. At the moment, however, the situation is worrying both in Iceland and Germany and other European countries.