According to the Circular Economy Business Innovation Centre, the average Victorian generates 28 kilograms of textile waste each year, only seven percent of which is recycled!
In
fact, along with plastics, textiles have some of the lowest rates of recycling
and resource recovery among all materials, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
ABS
figures also show households are responsible for 90 percent of the country’s textile
waste.
While this may seem daunting, is can be viewed positively: as households create this waste, it means they have control over it. What you do with your used textiles sends a message to manufacturers and government.
To donate, or not to donate?
When
thinking about getting rid of unwanted textiles, the first thing that comes to mind
for many of us is a visit to the nearest charity shop.
While
this is a great way to rehome clothes that could otherwise go to landfill, not
all clothes are suitable for donating. It is an unfortunate truth that charities
are paying $13 million a year to send 60,000 tonnes of unusable donations to
landfill each year.
To
help you decide if something is good enough to donate, Planet Ark suggests you ask
yourself a simple question:
Would I feel
comfortable giving this to a family member or friend to use?
If the answer is
no, it probably isn’t good enough to donate either.
Clothing and textiles that are not fit for donation - always check with the manufacturer first
Many brands now, such as H&M, Patagonia, Sheridan, Rebel Sport, Zara and Uniqlo offer in store recycling for their customers and accept a range of textile products in all conditions, sometimes from any brand.
We recommend returning that is not fit for donation to manufacturer run recycling programs as the best action for disposal for two main reasons. Firstly, this is good product stewardship - manufacturers are taking responsibility for the waste they helped generate, instead of passively letting it go to landfill or relying on charities and volunteers. Secondly, if customers do not use these programs, it sends the message to companies that they are not needed, or, in some cases, may render the program financially unviable.
If the manufacturer does not offer a return for recycling scheme, let them know you want one. Email, call, write, comment on their social media page or ask when you are in store. Tell them you will choose companies that do offer this in the future - remember, your dollar is your vote!
Clothing and textiles that are not fit for donation - options for when there is no brand run recycling program
Even if the brand that manufactured your textile product doesn't have a recycling program, you can still recycle it.
The table below lists where different items can be dropped off, or even picked up from your home. Always make sure items are clean first, as mould is a problem in textile recycling processes.
| Item |
Where to recycle |
| Clothing in any condition |
- Organise a paid Upparel pick-up. For $35, Upparel will pick up a box of clean clothing, shoes and textiles in any condition for recycling, and give you some of that money back
as a voucher to use at brands like Sportsgirl and Oodie.
- Drop off at a SCR clothing donation bin.
SCR accepts both wearable and non-wearable textiles, shoes and accessories, with a recycling rate of 94 percent. Old textiles are rehomed or turned into rags or even biofuel.
|
| Curtains, couch and cushion covers |
|
| Fabric and sewing scraps |
|
| Mattresses |
- Most residents can have two mattresses per year collected from their property at no extra charge, this collection is included in the waste service component of council rates.
- Drop off at the Geelong or Drysdale Resource Recovery centres. Check the relevant website for charges.
Mattresses collected through the above options are recycled by GDP Industries.
|
| Mattress protectors |
- Fabric mattress protectors (not plastic or waterproof) can be recycled via a paid Upparel pick up.
|
Sheets and doona covers
(no pillows or doonas)
|
|
| Shoes in any condition |
|
| Towels |
|
| Toys |
|
| Wetsuits |
- Drop off or mail for free to Ripcurl's Wetsuit Recycling Program with Terracycle. Mailing details and participating stores can be found on the Ripcurl website.
|
My textile product isn't listed in the table above
There are some products, such as cushion inserts, pillows, doonas and carpets that we have been unable to find a recycling option for. If you know of any, or any other great textile recycling programs available to residents in Geelong, we'd ove to hear about them. Get in touch by emailing us.