Achieving a 10% textile-to-textile recycling rate in the European Union by 2035 would slash carbon emissions by 440,000 tonnes annually and conserve 8.8 billion cubic metres of water, a new report by the IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute has found.
Recycling rates for textiles are currently low in the EU, with the majority of recycled textiles downgraded into products such as insulation. Textile-to-textile recycling, where discarded textiles are shredded and granulated to be used as the basis for new fabrics, stands at just 1% globally.
The EU strategy for sustainable and circular textiles has set the target of all textile products on the EU market being durable, repairable and recyclable by 2030, with studies suggesting that the latest fibre-to-fibre recycling technology could bring the textile-to-textile recycling rate to as high as 26% by the end of the decade.
The IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute’s 10% target is seen as a ‘conservative projection, but it is ambitious compared to where things stand currently’, the EU said.
Assessing recycling processes
The institute assessed product life cycles and environmental impacts of five textile recycling processes, including increased collection and sorting for recycling; increased recycling; reduced amounts of textiles incinerated and landfilled; reduced primary fibre production; and compensation for decreased energy production due to reduced incineration.
Its research determined a 92% probability of reduced climate impact from hitting the 10% recycling goal, and a near-100% chance of water savings.
Recycling system upgrade
However, the report cautions that recycling alone isn’t enough: recycling systems will need to be upgraded to promote energy efficiency, and to ensure that recycled fibres are of high enough quality to replace virgin sources.
‘Moves at EU level to support such developments could fall under the Energy Efficiency Directive and Circular Economy action plan,’ the EU noted.
‘Fibre-to-fibre recycling also requires policy support to play a significant role in hitting European waste targets, and there are barriers to be overcome in textile collection and segregation systems, which vary significantly between countries. EU Member States are required to have established separate collection streams for used textiles from 2025.’ Read more here.
