Textile Recycling – Positive Change or Toxic Truth?

The fashion and textile industry is highly polluting and has been criticized for a lack of end-of-life solutions. With the emergence of the circular economy, textile recycling has been identified as a potential way forward in addressing the waste challenge, which has accelerated in light of fast and ultra-fast fashion production. Currently, textile recycling, whether this is open- or closed-loop recycling, remains niche, with less than 20% of garments actually undergoing the process. A second challenge that has been identified is surrounding ecotoxicity. Textile recycling processes utilize various chemicals, some of which can pose a significant environmental and health risk. Yet, there is limited research that defines the quantity and variety of chemicals present in our garments. A more critical question is whether these levels differ in mixed materials containing recycled fibres. As such, this scenario raises a crucial question: Are our clothes harming the planet and threatening human health? Our research aims to investigate this issue by systematically investigating the types and levels of chemical contaminants found in recycled polyester garments, those that use post-consumer waste (closed-loop) and those that use PET bottles (open-loop).