The new paradigms: reuse and recycling, renewable energy, and turning waste into resources ...
The textile sector is one of the most polluting industries globally. Based on a linear supply chain, it involves the continuous extraction of raw materials-a business model that is now unsustainable in climate, environmental and social terms. According to the European Environment Agency report, the textile sector ranks fourth in terms of environmental impact and climate change, third in terms of water and land consumption, and fifth in terms of raw material use and greenhouse gas emissions.
In order to limit the impact of the industry, a reversal to a circular approach is needed that treats waste as a resource and provides for reuse and recycling logics.
Annually, 53 million tons of fibers are produced for clothing, of which only 1 percent is recycled in a closed loop; in fact, 87 percent of end-of-life clothing ends up in landfills or is incinerated.
The Ellen MacArthur Foundation periodically publishes studies on the world of textiles. Each year, according to recent surveys, the textile industry uses more than 98 million tons of nonrenewable resources such as petroleum to produce the synthetic fibers, fertilizers used on plantations, and chemicals to produce, dye, and finish fibers and fabrics. Only 20 percent of raw materials are produced or extracted in Europe the rest come from outside Europe, so 80 percent of the environmental impacts generated by consumption in Europe occur outside the continent.
About 93 billion cubic meters of water are then used for textile cultivation and 500 thousand tons of microplastic fibers are poured into the oceans. Primary microplastics, which can end up in the food chain globally, are also released into the environment. As for land consumption, the production chain uses about 180,000 square kilometers of it per year, only 8 percent of which is in Europe. More than 90 percent of soil consumption occurs outside the continent, mainly in China and India.
The industry is then responsible for the emission of about 1.2 billion tons of CO2, of which 50 percent is attributable to clothing 30 percent to textiles and 20 percent to footwear, making it the fifth sector responsible for climate change after housing, food, mobility and culture.
Also not to be underestimated are the negative social effects produced by the textile industry, including child or slave labor, low wages and working hours outside normal conventions.
Replacing the linear business model typical of the textile industry with the circular business model makes it possible to limit its impact on all fronts from environmental to social and climate.
Circular economy principles applied to textiles make it possible to limit waste production because textile waste is transformed into valuable resources. Compared with the use of harmful substances, the use of renewable resources is favored while also avoiding the release of microfibers into the seas and the environment. Using recycled material and safe chemicals and diversified biodegradable materials then allows for optimizing water and energy use and reducing climate-changing emissions.
Circularly produced garments are designed to last a long time. New service models centered on repair and reuse practices are therefore developed to extend the life of garments beyond the first purchase and avoid their disposal. Recycling then allows fibers to be recovered and reused for the production of new products (secondary raw materials).
In order to change the textile supply chain to green, it is also necessary to raise end-user awareness with ad hoc campaigns and make them more and more aware through, for example, the use of labels that guarantee truthful and relevant information, including regarding, for example, the average lifespan of products.
Many companies engaged in virtuous applications of circular economy principles are dedicated to transforming waste, both from textile production and from other sectors such as food, to make new products. This is the case of vegetable leather made from the waste of wine production, such as the fibers and vegetable oils found in grape marc or yarn made from the waste of citrus production or nylon made from the recycling of waste collected at sea.
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