The amount of used textiles, including clothes and shoes, exported from the European Union has tripled in the past 20 years, according to a report by the EU’s environment agency EEA.
Many used textiles are exported to Africa and Asia as the reuse and recycling capacities in Europe are limited. EU textile exports increased from just over 550,000 tonnes to nearly 1.7 million tonnes between 2000 and 2019, according to a United Nations analysis. This means an average of 3.8 kilograms of textiles per person per year.
The huge increase in discarded textiles is not the only problem. According to the analysis, some of the EU’s textile exports have shifted from mainly African destinations to Asia. “Consumers’ perception that donated, used clothing will still be of use in these regions does not correspond to reality,” the environmental experts write in the analysis. “Once exported, the fate of the used textiles is uncertain. Which is not suitable for reuse mostly ends up in open dumps and informal waste streams”.
Discarded textiles from the EU cause problems in Africa and Asia
In 2019, the European Union exported 46 percent of used textiles to Africa. There, the textiles are mainly reused locally, as there is a demand for cheap, used clothing from Europe. The part that is not suitable for reuse ends up in open landfills and in unofficial waste channels.
In the same year, 41 percent of used textiles originating from Europe ended up in Asia. Most of these textiles end up in special economic zones, where they are sorted and processed, as the analysis shows. There, most textiles are processed into industrial cleaning rags or filling material. In addition, the textiles are re-exported to other Asian countries for recycling or for reuse in Africa.
New laws aim to tackle the problem of textile waste
From 2025, there will be an obligation in Europe to collect textiles separately as part of extended producer responsibility. The Environment Agency therefore assumes that the amount of textiles collected will continue to increase in the coming years. To ensure that textile pollution does not get worse in Africa and Asia (and in the EU), manufacturers and importers will be responsible for collecting, reusing and recycling the textile products they place on the market. To this end, producers and importers must set up and finance a suitable collection system. The aim of such an extended producer responsibility law is to work towards a circular economy.
This translated post previously appeared on FashionUnited.nl.