No more throwing away old clothes, shoes and other textiles into the black mixed waste container. Since the beginning of this year, we have been obliged to collect waste separately. What exactly does this mean and what should municipalities do? Anita Sowińska from the Left, deputy minister in the Ministry of Climate and Environment, talked about the changes on Monday.
From January 1 2025 changes to the Waste Act came into force. An obligation to selectively collect textile waste: clothing and footwear, as well as any other waste (blankets, curtains, quilts, etc.) has been introduced. Such waste can no longer be disposed of in household mixed waste containers.
So what should you do? We should take textile waste to a selective municipal waste collection point. There must be at least one PSZOK in each commune. However, not every old T-shirt will require us to go to the point. Deputy Minister Sowińska talked about various collection methods that municipalities can use.
Municipalities do not receive additional funds for textile collection this year. However, according to Sowińska, it may be “costless” for them thanks to the appropriate management of this waste. – We underestimate how much textiles are worth. By signing a contract with a company dealing with the collection and collection of this waste, the commune also participates in these revenues and it may be cost-free for it, she said.
Penalties for throwing away clothes incorrectly?
– The Ministry of Climate and Environment has sent a letter to all municipalities in Poland with a set of good textile collection practices – the deputy minister announced at the conference.
One option is to collect clothes door to door. Already last year it was introduced by Częstochowa. The company that operates the system provides residents with special bags for clothes and then collects them with their contents. The service is free. However, there is a catch – clothes, shoes and other textiles should be in good condition. Damaged and dirty items are not accepted and must be taken to PSZOK yourself.
Municipalities may decide on their own to place containers or separate containers for such waste in garbage sheds. However, there is a risk that even if clothes are thrown there in good condition, they will become dirty or damaged over time due to improper use of the containers. In addition, the ministry recommends that municipalities conduct educational activities and encourage residents to apply good clothing practices themselves. – Each commune is a bit different and not all have the same solution will check – said the deputy minister.
Sowińska said at the conference that “municipalities are responsible for the form and quality of textile collection” and the same applies to fines. – The commune is responsible for compliance with the obligation of selective collection, and the residents themselves are obliged to segregate waste. This already applies to electronics, for example. So if, for example, they throw an old phone into mixed waste, they are breaking the law and the commune may be fined for it. It's the same with textiles now, she said.
What about clothes containers?
Due to changes in the law, the clothing containers placed by the Polish Red Cross do not disappear. Sowińska said that, on the contrary, the ministry encourages charity collections and other activities that allow clothes to be given a second life. These may be collections such as those in PCK containers (most of which, although most of the clothing does not go to those in need, but is processed for industrial needs), or smaller initiatives.
Sowińska brought up the idea stock exchanges second-hand clothes from Radom or rebutics operating e.g. in Opole and Izabelin, where residents can share their clothes.
Such practices help reduce the problem of throwing away clothes that are suitable for further wear. However, those that cannot be dealt with because they are damaged and dirty must be collected selectively. Of course, you don't have to go to PSZOK with every single piece of clothing. Electronics and other problematic waste are disposed of at the same points, so if possible, you can collect them and take them back from time to time.
A growing textile problem
At the conference, the deputy minister cited data according to which the average resident of the European Union buys 26 kilograms of clothes annually. In turn, approximately 11 kilograms of clothing and footwear per person ends up in the trash every year. The vast majority are not recycled. Meanwhile, the production of each piece of clothing means greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption and other environmental burdens.
A growing problem is the so-called fast fashion – especially large foreign platforms – and the destruction of clothes returned during online shopping. According to data cited by the ministry, from 22 to 42 percent of returned clothes are destroyed.
The Ministry of Climate is currently working on the so-called extended producer responsibility for plastic packaging, and similar regulations for the clothing industry are being negotiated at the European Union level.
– The idea is for producers to be financially responsible and encouraged to design clothes eco-friendly – said Sowińska. Additional funds that producers will have to allocate in connection with the responsibility for their products throughout their life cycle will be able to go to municipalities and be used for waste management. However, the introduction of these regulations for the clothing industry will take years – the law is currently being created, then the EU must accept them and individual countries must implement them in their own countries.