Recycling of Low Grade Clothing Waste - Oakdene Hollins

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© Oakdene Hollins Ltd, Salvation Army Trading Company Ltd Nonwovens Innovation & Research Institute Ltd September 2006 5.1.6 Summary of Arisings and Fates Table 9 summarises the figures calculated in this section. For clarity in interpreting the figures, reference is again made to the Material Flow Chart in Appendix I. Table 9: Summary of Arisings and Disposals ‘000 tonnes Apparent consumption of new textiles 1,812 Imports of used textiles 12 Consumption of used textiles 41 ‘000 tonnes % of New Consumption Total Consumption 1,865 100% Textiles entering the MSW waste stream 1,165 63% Textiles collected for resale and recycling 324 17% Of which: Resale for re-use in the UK 41 Exported for resale for re-use 174 Recycled in the UK 62 Exported for recycling 26 Rubbish, returned to waste stream 21 Net textiles diverted from waste stream 303 16% Textiles unaccounted for 397 21% For the purpose of analysis, it is assumed that the recycled portion is not part of the MSW figures, since many of the recycled products will ultimately enter the industrial waste stream, and will not therefore be classed as municipal waste. Also, the UK resale quantity is assumed to be sensibly constant from year to year. From the figures, certain deductions can be made, as follows: • The quantity of textiles collected in the UK in 2004/5 was 324k tonnes, which represents a recovery rate of 17% of the apparent consumption. 21k tonnes of this, equivalent to 1% of consumption, are unusable by the secondary textile industry and are returned to the waste stream as rubbish. • There is a considerable quantity of textiles unaccounted for, amounting to 397k tonnes, or just over 6 kg per head of population per year. Here it must be remembered that this figure includes non‐apparel textiles. Assuming that this is an annual occurrence and has been happening for some years, there must be large quantities of textiles accumulating in the ‘national wardrobe’. Considering the reduction in storage space in modern housing, pressures may be building to clear this accumulation of ‘latent rubbish’. For Defra Page 38
© Oakdene Hollins Ltd, Salvation Army Trading Company Ltd Nonwovens Innovation & Research Institute Ltd September 2006 • The industry is currently diverting 262k tonnes, or 0.7% of the household waste stream, to export markets and to recycling processing in the UK. • In spite of the activity in the secondary textile industry, 1,165k tonnes annually remain available for recovery from the waste stream. Indeed, at the point that the ‘national wardrobe’ is only increasing at the rate of population growth, then the potential for additional recovery from the waste stream becomes approximately 1,560k tonnes. There is, therefore, the potential to deliver an improvement in used textiles waste recycling rates equivalent to an additional 4.4% of the household waste stream, providing there is the processing capacity within the UK or Europe. However, any initiative designed to increase recycling must take potential rapid de‐stocking into account in order to avoid overwhelming the secondary textile industry. 5.2 Quality and Price Trends The best quality used clothing is received from donors who drop old clothes at the charity shops. At an average selling price of £2 to £3 per item, and a maximum average weight per item of 0.3kg, these can be worth between £6,000 and £9,000 per tonne at resale value after sorting. The next best quality is that arising from door‐to‐door collections. Collections from textile banks yield a mix of very slightly poorer quality material and can occasionally contain contaminated, spoiled and totally worn out products, together with small amounts of rubbish. Textile bank material is worth approximately £200 per tonne after sorting and clearance of the rubbish. There are no overall regional differences in the quality of clothing donated although, clearly, within each region there will be less affluent areas which tend to donate less quantity and lower value material. Shoes tend to have a higher value than clothes and attract some £100 per tonne more than textiles at point of sale to the rag collector. Non‐apparel items such as bedding, curtains, and carpets also get donated, but this is a small percentage. The prices paid by the collector/sorters to the collection organisations, normally the charity shops, have fluctuated considerably over the last 15 years. Prices have been as low as zero, when there has been a glut of material or a restriction in a key export market, to £270 per tonne. From evidence received, prices paid have realistically ranged from £60 to £220 per tonne. In March 2005 textile processing companies were paying on average £150 per tonne for surplus textiles from the charity shops. Further anecdotal evidence suggests that purchase prices are holding at above £200 For Defra Page 39
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Recycling of Low Grade Clothing Waste - Oakdene Hollins

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