California’s mounting pile of discarded clothing is drawing renewed attention as state officials prepare to implement a new law aimed at keeping textiles out of landfills and shifting more responsibility to the fashion industry.
Each year, nearly 1.2 million tons of textiles are buried in California landfills, according to CalRecycle. The cost to dispose of clothing and other textile products is estimated at about $99 million annually, even though many items still could be reused. Nationally, roughly 85% of unwanted clothing is either landfilled or burned.
The issue has grown alongside the rise of fast fashion, which has encouraged consumers to buy more clothing than previous generations, often at lower prices and with shorter life spans. Many garments are made for quick-changing trends rather than long-term use, contributing to a cycle of overproduction and disposal. In the United States, about 5 billion pounds of customer returns are sent to landfills each year.
Mattias Wallander, chief executive of USAgain, a clothing and textile recycling company, said California has long been seen as a national leader on environmental policy but has more work to do when it comes to textiles.
Recycling may eventually become a larger part of the solution, but current technology remains limited. Less than 1% of collected textiles are recycled back into new fibers for manufacturing. Fiber-to-fiber recycling is still costly, difficult to expand and often requires intensive chemical processing.
That leaves reuse and collection as the most immediate ways to reduce textile waste, Wallander said.
A major step came with Senate Bill 707, the Responsible Textile Recovery Act of 2024. The law creates an extended producer responsibility system for textiles, requiring companies that sell clothing and related products in California to help pay for managing those items at the end of their useful life. Similar approaches have been used for other waste streams, placing more of the burden on producers rather than taxpayers.
If carried out effectively, supporters say the law could keep hundreds of thousands of tons of clothing out of landfills, lower greenhouse gas emissions and generate an estimated 1,000 to 2,500 jobs in California’s green economy.
But advocates say the success of the program will depend heavily on whether residents have easy ways to donate or drop off unwanted clothing. Collection bins, often placed near shopping centers, grocery stores and other high-traffic locations, are considered one of the simplest tools for gathering reusable textiles.
Convenience is key, Wallander said. When donation options are hard to find, limited by hours or burdened by restrictions, more clothing is likely to end up in household trash.
In many California communities, however, local rules governing collection bins were written before textile recovery became a priority. Permit fees, zoning limits, parcel restrictions and inconsistent city regulations can make it difficult for collectors to expand. In cities including downtown Los Angeles, Oakland and Irvine, rules are so restrictive that textile collection may be limited to private property.
Collectors operating in California have estimated that easing such barriers could increase textile collection by 50% to 75%, according to research cited by Wallander.
For Southern California communities, including the Inland Empire, the question is likely to become more visible as the state develops detailed regulations under SB 707. Local governments, waste haulers, retailers, nonprofits and textile recovery companies will all play roles in determining how easily residents can divert clothing from the trash.
California’s textile waste problem is not expected to be solved by recycling alone, at least not in the near term. But a stronger collection and reuse system could extend the life of clothing already in circulation and reduce pressure on landfills.
As the state moves from passing the law to putting it into practice, advocates say the challenge will be building a system that is accessible enough for everyday use. The clothing Californians discard may otherwise remain a growing waste problem — even as the state seeks to turn it into part of a broader climate solution.
Original source: CalMatters
