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22 Worldwide Statistics About Clothing & Textile Waste

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Global numbers for textile waste seem to be on the rise due to increases in clothing production and consumption, and the decreased usage of each article of clothing by consumers. Textile waste poses a big problem from an environmental and social perspective. Existing recycling technologies and programs fail to handle the immense amount of textile waste generated each year, with only about 10-15% of discarded clothing items being recycled. Fiber-to-fiber recycling is in even worse shape, with only 1% of discarded textiles being turned into new fabrics and textiles. 

Contents list:

  1. What % of landfills is clothing?
  2. How long do clothes take to decompose?
  3. Is textile waste increasing?
  4. Why is it a problem?
  5. What % of clothes get recycled?

What percentage of landfills is clothing?

  1. In 2018, 4.4% of Municipal Solid Waste / landfills in the US were composed of clothing and footwear waste. (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2018)
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  2. In 2018, US landfills received 11.3 million tons of textile waste including clothing, home textiles, and other fabric goods. This composed 7.7% of total Municipal Solid Waste landfilled in 2018. (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2018)
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  3. In 2012, the UK generated an estimated 350,000 tonnes of textile waste that ended up in landfills, making up about 0.2% of all landfilled waste. (UK Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs, UK Statistics on Waste – 2010 to 2012) (WRAP, 2012)
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  4. Textiles make up the third largest category of waste in Indian landfills. (Parikh for The Times of India, 2018)

How long do clothes take to decompose?

  1. In a study done by Warnock et al. comparing the decomposition rates of different cellulose based textiles, rayon was found to decompose in 1.5 months, cotton in about 3 months, and Tencel™ lyocell in 6.5 months. (Warnock et al., Arkansas University, 2009)
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  2. Polyester, the most commonly used synthetic fiber in the textile industry, is commonly reported to take anywhere from 20 to 200 years to decompose depending on the weight, weave, and treatment of the fabric. (Stanes & Gibson, University of Wollongong, 2017) I could not, however, confirm this fact from scientific and / or academic resources so it is just an estimate.

Is textile waste increasing?

  1. From 1960 to 2018, the amount of clothing and footwear that has been landfilled in the US has increased from 1.3 million tons to over 9 million tons per year. (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2018)
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  2. If we include other textiles like towels and bed sheets, this number climbs to 10+ million tons. (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2018)
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  3. In a single year, clothing-specific textile waste production in the United States has increased by over a million tons. (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2018)
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  4. From 2012 to 2017, there has been a 50,000 tonne decrease in clothing waste from UK households. (WRAP, Valuing Our Clothes, 2017)
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  5. The United Nations Alliance for Sustainable Fashion reported that the average consumer is buying 60% more articles of clothing compared to the early 2000s and each piece is kept in use for only half as long. The increased consumption and decreased lifespan rates mean an increase in the textile waste generated globally. (United Nations Environment Programme, 2019)

Why is textile waste a problem?

  1. Textiles are estimated to contribute to 7% of landfills in the US. (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2018) Landfills emit high volumes of LFG (landfill gas) which is composed of methane and CO2. High emissions of methane significantly contribute to global warming and the ongoing climate crisis, as methane is even more effective than CO2 in trapping heat within our atmosphere. (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2023) 
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  2. According to the World Apparel Fiber Consumption Survey, clothing made using synthetic fibers like polyester and acrylic make up over 60% of global apparel purchases, and this number is predicted to increase with time. (FAO / ICAC, World Apparel Fiber Consumption Survey, 2013) Combined with the fact that synthetic / man-made materials can take 80 to 800 times longer to decompose than natural fibers like cotton, this poses a serious environmental problem. (Stanes & Gibson, University of Wollongong, 2017)
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  3. The fashion industry has a carbon-intensive supply and distribution chain, water-intensive production techniques, and it generates high amounts of greenhouse gasses. (United Nations Climate Change, 2018), (UNECE, 2018). With increasing global clothing consumption rates (European Environment Agency, 2019) comes increased amounts of textile waste.
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  4. The existing waste management systems for textile waste involve greenhouse gas emissions, air and water pollutants, and toxic substances that affect human, animal, and plant life in the environment. (European Environment Agency, 2019)
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  5. The fashion industry is responsible for 20% of global wastewater and up to 8% of global carbon emissions. (United Nations Environment Programme, 2019)
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  6. The apparel and footwear industries were responsible for about 8% of global pollution impacts in 2016, with the apparel industry responsible for nearly 7% of the impact. Together, they created nearly 4 million tonnes of CO2 emissions. (Measuring Fashion report, 2018, Quantis)

What percentage of clothing actually gets recycled?

  1. According to data from 2018, only about 13% of clothing and footwear waste was recycled, while about 70% of waste was landfilled. (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2018)
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  2. Less than 13% of textile waste is recycled in the European Union, and 87% of clothing waste is landfilled or incinerated. (European Parliament, 2020)
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  3. The statistics on the number of clothing articles that get recycled into new apparel are even lower. Less than 1% of clothing waste is recycled into new clothes, partially owing to the technical challenges and limitations that exist within current systems of recycling and textile waste management. (European Parliament, 2020)
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  4. According to a comprehensive study commissioned by Fashion for Good in 2022 about India’s textile waste, 7.8 million tonnes of textile waste is accumulated in India each year, accounting for 8.5% of the global total for textile waste. 59% of this textile waste goes back into the textile industry through recycling and reusing. 1.7 million tonnes of textile waste is either landfilled or incinerated, making up 22% of the total amount of textile waste. (Wealth in Waste: India’s Potential to Bring Back Textile Waste Back into the Supply Chain, 2022, Fashion for Good)
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  5. China is responsible for producing 20 to 26 million tonnes of textile waste each year, and according to The China Association for Circular Economy, only 10-15% of discarded textile products are separated out for recycling, reutilization, reselling, or donation. An official news information portal in China reported even lower figures, claiming that only 1% of the 26 million tonnes of clothing and textile waste are reutilized in some way in 2016. (Netherlands Enterprise Agency, 2019; Xinhuanet, 2016; Ellen McArthur Foundation, 2018)

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This article was written by Nisan Aktürk and edited by Sara Maker.

Nisan Aktürk (author)
Nisan started her sewing journey in December 2019 and already has a fully handmade wardrobe. She’s made 50+ trousers, 20+ buttoned shirts, and a wide array of coats, jackets, t-shirts, and jeans. She’s currently studying for her Sociology Master’s degree and is writing a thesis about sewing. So she spends a lot of her time either sewing or thinking/writing about sewing! Read more…