The Canadian government has allocated $662,161 to Fashion Takes Action to create the Canadian Circular Textiles Consortium aimed at reducing textile waste and promoting sustainability in the fashion industry.
The Canadian government has announced a significant financial initiative, granting $662,161 to Fashion Takes Action for the establishment of the Canadian Circular Textiles Consortium. This initiative is aimed at fostering collaboration among key players in the textiles industry, including manufacturers, retailers, recyclers, and end users throughout the country. The consortium will focus on creating a dialogue around circular textiles and facilitating information exchange related to textile waste and sustainability efforts.
Kelly Drennan, the founding executive director of Fashion Takes Action, expressed enthusiasm about the funding received from Environment and Climate Change Canada. In a statement, she said, “We are thrilled to receive support from Environment and Climate Change Canada to advance circular solutions for textile waste. This funding enables us to drive research on institutional and commercial textile waste, while also fostering innovation and collaboration through the Canadian Circular Textiles Consortium. Together, we can create a more sustainable and circular future for fashion.”
The urgent need for this initiative is underscored by the statistics showing that textiles represent the fifth-largest category of plastic waste deposited into landfills across Canada. Currently, processes for collecting and recycling textiles are severely limited, with an alarming 98% of textile waste ending up in landfills. Furthermore, the average household in Canada and the United States is responsible for releasing approximately 533 million microfibres from laundry into wastewater systems annually. Despite wastewater treatment plants capturing over 95% of these microfibres, around 878 tonnes, equating to 3.5 quadrillion microfibres, continue to enter waterways each year.
The goals of the Canadian Circular Textiles Consortium extend beyond just collaboration; they include policy design, the development of standards for circularity in textiles, and enhancing education outreach within the community. As part of this initiative, Fashion Takes Action plans to conduct research specifically targeting textile waste produced by industrial, commercial, and institutional entities. Additionally, the consortium will oversee a pilot project focused on the collection and sorting of fabric scraps in the Greater Toronto Area.
The initiative aims to minimize the redundancy in resource allocation and encourage partnerships among stakeholders committed to establishing a new circular textile economy in Canada. Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, highlighted the government’s intent to eliminate plastic waste and pollution, stating, “We are fully committed to ending plastic waste and pollution in Canada, but we cannot do this alone. I applaud Fashion Takes Action’s commitment to bring stakeholders from across the country together to reduce textile and plastic waste. By working together, we can create a cleaner, healthier future for everyone while keeping plastics in the economy and out of the environment.”
This foundational effort underlines a growing recognition of the importance of transforming the textiles sector into a more sustainable model, addressing the pressing issues of waste and environmental impact associated with textile production and disposal.
Source: Noah Wire Services
