Throwing away clothes can affect our carbon footprint

One problem with the spring sunny weather is that people update their wardrobe leading to 300,000 tonnes of textiles ending up in landfill every year, adding five per cent to our carbon and water footprint.

Latest research showed fashion followers threw away clothes worth £12.5 billion last year with each person putting an average of eight items in the bin.

Yet if every tonne of clothing was put out for recycling instead of going to landfill it would save more than half a tonne of carbon dioxide emissions.

“They are quite staggering figures,” said green energy expert Ron Fox. “It also shows that it is not only large plans by world governments that can save our planet, but also small and simple steps by individuals.”

In a study commissioned by Vanish, the stain removal brand, one in ten people said they threw away clothes after wearing them only a few times because it was easy and cheap to buy new ones. One in 20 admitted throwing away unused items because they could not be bothered to return them to the shop.

It found that people had good intentions, bagging the clothes up for charity shops, but 60 per cent admitted throwing them away in landfill to save on hassle.

The research found that people considered an item of clothing was old after about seven weeks or only 20 washes.

“It would be much easier and much better for our carbon footprint if people gave them instead to friends, family or charity shops,” said Ron, of Noreus Ltd on the University of Keele Science and Innovation Park.

The waste charity wrap said that clothes dumped in landfill give off methane, a greenhouse gas.

It added that if the clothes were used for an extra nine months and extending their average life to about three years, their carbon and water footprints would be reduced by up to 30 per cent.

The survey also found that many binned clothes if they were stained, or had a hole in them, even though they could have been repaired or cleaned.

A total of 32 per cent admitted putting stained clothes in the washing machine without any special treatment and if the stain was still there at the end of the cycle they would throw the clothes away.

And 27 per cent threw garments away because of a hole that could have easily been sewn up.

“What is clear that the thrift of previous generations has been overtaken by the throwaway generation,” added Ron. “We seem to have lost the skills of repairing clothes which used to be passed down to children.”

“Perhaps also more should be done to encourage charities and local authorities to provide more collection services.”

Ron said the survey also showed that nearly a third of clothes, worth more than £1,000 per household or £30 billion, hadn’t been worn in the previous 12 months.

“Perhaps we all ought to give our wardrobes a spring clean and help our planet,” he added.

For help and advice about green energy matters contact Ron Fox on 01782 756995 or go to www.noreus.co.uk