Perspectives of Textile Waste Management in the U.S. – A Review

In the last 30 years, global consumption of textile articles has increased significantly. Population increase along with the booming of fast fashion trends are facilitating the growth of global textile consumption. The current pandemic situation is raising the consumption of protective clothing. Such scenarios are diminishing the lifecycle of textile products significantly. Consequently, the world has observed a considerable increase in textile waste generation in recent years and is predicted to increase even more in the coming years due to the current consumption trends. Despite being highly recyclable, much of such wastes go into open dumps or landfills. The U.S. has also seen an increase in textile waste generation, and most of the wastes is landfilled. Disposing of such a huge waste stream can be identified as mismanagement due to its impact on the environment, society, and corresponding footprints. To counter the impact of the rising textile wastages, it is necessary to address sustainable approaches via a structured textile waste management system. This review aims to observe the textile waste scenarios based on the U.S.’s perspectives. An overall aspect of textile waste generation has been presented briefly while considering the current circumstances in the U.S. Current trends of textile waste management in the U.S. have been discussed while mentioning other available options in waste management. Lastly, this review has proposed some probable study directions that would facilitate establishing efficient textile waste management across the U.S.

Keywords:Fast fashion; Municipal solid waste; Textile waste; Wastewater; Waste management; Recycle; Reuse; Production wastages; Preconsumer textile wastages; Post-consumer textile wastages

Abbreviation:EPA- Environmental Protection Agency; ISO - International Organization for Standardization; COD- Chemical oxygen demand; CFRCode of Federal Regulations; NPDES- National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System; POTW- Publicly Owned Yreatment Works; PFAS- Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances; PPE- Personal Protective Equipment