大量の古着が店舗、慈善団体、自治体によって回収されています。

READING

Large amounts of used clothing are collected by shops, charities, and local governments. Some items can be worn again, but damaged clothing is often burned or buried. Fiber-to-fiber recycling offers another option. In this process, old clothes are separated, cleaned, and broken down into fibers. The fibers are then used to make yarn and produce new fabric for clothing and other useful textile products.

Supporters believe this process has several benefits. First, it can reduce the amount of clothing sent to waste facilities. Since more damaged items are recycled, fewer of them need to be buried or burned. There is another advantage. Producing cotton and synthetic fibers requires large amounts of water, energy, and raw materials. These resources are needed before fabric can be produced and supplied to clothing companies. Using recycled fibers can therefore reduce the resources required to make new clothing.

However, critics point out a problem. Many clothes contain mixtures of cotton, polyester, and other materials that are difficult to separate. Buttons, dyes, and special coatings can also interfere with recycling. The resulting fibers may therefore be too weak for high-quality clothing, greatly limiting how they can be reused.