Consumers, with support from environmental advocates, are starting to push back. One example could be seen in a corner of the “deinfluencing” movement that picked up steam on TikTok and other social media platforms in late January, with some popular trend-setters using their platforms to encourage their followersAt the same time, a growing focus on sustainability has created a massive market for rented and used clothing.
Goodwill takes multiple steps to avoid letting donated goods end up in landfills, said Marla Eby with Goodwill Southern California, which covers much of Los Angeles County as well as Riverside and San Bernardino counties. First, Eby said, Goodwill tries to sell items through their retail stores, boutiques and online. Unsold items from then go to outlet stores.
And despite the best efforts of organizations like Goodwill, each year, the average U.S. consumer throws away more than 81 pounds of clothing — an increase of 55% per capita over the past two decades. Textiles are the sixth most common material in the overall waste stream, CalRecycle says, making up 4% of all landfilled waste.After Oregon passed the first stewardship program laws for paint in 2009, that industry saw the writing on the wall.
Amon’s Clothing Take Back program offers businesses a similar model to what California is pitching in Newman’s proposed legislation. His company provides bins that can be set up at a manufacturer or retail store, where consumers can return unwanted items. His team then arranges for pickup and transport to his Atlanta site, where the old clothes can be sorted for reuse or recycling.
Amon declined to discuss how his company handles such problems, citing a proprietary process. But he said more technology is needed to help the industry address those issues and to make textile recycling scale up in a major way.