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Textiles
Textiles in municipal solid waste are found mainly in discarded clothing, although other sources include furniture, carpets, tires, footwear, and nondurable goods such as sheets and towels. EPA estimates that approximately 13.5 percent of textiles in clothing, sheets, and pillowcases was recovered for export or reprocessing in 2000. Handling this load are the more than 500 textile recycling companies in the United States, most of which are family-owned businesses that employ 35 to 50 people, according to the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. The Council for Textile Recycling estimates that 48 percent of reclaimed textiles are reused as second-hand clothing, 20 percent become wiping and polishing cloths, and the remaining 26 percent are converted into fiber to be used in new textile products. The industry employs approximately 10,000 semi-skilled workers at the primary processing level and creates an additional 7,000 jobs at the final processing stage. Primary and secondary processors account for annual gross sales of $400 million and $300 million, respectively.
More than 61 percent of textiles that are collected for reuse or recycling are exported to foreign countries. Thus, the strength of the textile recycling industry is largely dependent on those frequently volatile economies. In addition, despite record demand for textiles, the industry has been downsizing as a result of insufficient supply. Experts cite increased municipal recycling of textiles as a critical strategy to increase supply. Currently, successful community recycling programs range from curbside collection to drop off centers, often partnering with local charities and nonprofit organizations. With end users paying between $80 to $160 per ton for the recovered textiles, revenues are covering most communities' textile processing costs. Therefore, additional education is needed to increase the tonnages collected through municipal and county programs.
Although it is still in the early stages of development, carpet recycling is a key area of growth in the textile industry. Carpet recycling can include refurbishment, recycling carpet into new carpet face fiber, manufacturing fibers into other plastic products and carpet backing into new backing, or producing a recycled-content carpet backing by melting different types of backing and fiber materials together. Barriers to carpet recycling include its bulkiness and the typically long distances to markets, which can make it difficult to cost-effectively recycle. Also, carpet fibers and backing are comprised of a wide variety of materials, making it difficult to develop standard recycling technologies.