Environmental impact of textile reuse and recycling - A review
Review article, 2018
The reviewed publications provide strong support for claims that textile reuse and recycling in general reduce environmental impact compared to incineration and landfilling, and that reuse is more beneficial than recycling. The studies do, however, expose scenarios under which reuse and recycling are not beneficial for certain environmental impacts. For example, as benefits mainly arise due to the avoided production of new products, benefits may not occur in cases with low replacement rates or if the avoided production processes are relatively clean. Also, for reuse, induced customer transport may cause environmental impact that exceeds the benefits of avoided production, unless the use phase is sufficiently extended.
In terms of critical methodological assumptions, authors most often assume that textiles sent to recycling are wastes free of environmental burden, and that reused products and products made from recycled materials replace products made from virgin fibres. Examples of other content mapped in the review are: trends of publications over time, common aims and geographical scopes, commonly included and omitted impact categories, available sources of primary inventory data, knowledge gaps and future research needs. The latter include the need to study cascade systems, to explore the potential of combining various reuse and recycling routes.
Life cycle assessment
Collaborative consumption
LCA
Circular economy
Clothing
Waste management
Author
Gustav A Sandin
RISE Research Institutes of Sweden
Gregory Peters
University of New South Wales (UNSW)
Chalmers, Technology Management and Economics, Environmental Systems Analysis
Journal of Cleaner Production
0959-6526 (ISSN)
Vol. 184 353-365Driving Forces
Sustainable development
Subject Categories
Social Sciences Interdisciplinary
Interaction Technologies
Environmental Sciences
DOI
10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.02.266