Old clothing chaos in the Havelland: Throwing away is a big challenge!

Old clothing chaos in the Havelland: Throwing away is a big challenge!

In Germany, there is currently a truly great confusion about the topic of old clothing collection. The demand is low, and the new EU requirements have tightened the Situation, such as rbb24 . In the Havelland, there is already a sudden increase in the old clothes, which has increased tenfold since January - from 900 kg to an impressive 9,000 kg per month. This development not only brings problems for the recycling centers, but also for the entire old clothing industry in Europe.

yvonne Weigel, the head of the recycling center in Falkensee, comments concerned about improper disposal. Not only clothes can be found on the old clothing containers, but also rubble and electrical appliances. The residents are upset about the increasing garbage deposits that are troubling the neighborhood. Regular empties of the containers are necessary, which now takes place weekly instead of every two weeks - another sign of the crisis.

EU guidelines and their effects

With an effective date of January 1, 2025, used textiles in the EU must be collected separately from other waste. This is intended to reduce the annually over one million tons of old textiles that end up in containers in Germany and promote reuse and recycling, such as ZDF informed. However, only about 50% of the collected textiles still end up in a useful condition. Around 10% of these textiles go to the needy people, while the rest are often steamed outside the EU.

The separation of the old textiles also raises some questions in the municipalities. Uwe Feige from the Association of Local Company emphasizes that many of its members are already actively collecting textiles. However, the responsibility is not only with the consumer, but also among public waste. From January 1, 2025, it is the case that old textiles are no longer allowed to be disposed of or burned in residual waste - a clear step towards more sustainability.

Diverse challenges for the old clothing industry

The new regulations come at an unfavorable time, since the fast-fashion trend leads to a variety of inferior clothing, which are often classified as unusable. The German Red Cross Hesse expresses concerns: the users are increasingly under pressure with payment problems and many report bankruptcy, which further exacerbates the situation. In some regions, such as in Friesack, contracts were even terminated with disposal providers due to littering.

The challenges forces the municipalities to think about new ways of investigation. In the Hovelland district, it is plans to provide information about social media how old clothes are properly disposed of. Hopes are expressed that the number of containers can rise again by correctly disposal.

An "expanded responsibility for manufacturers" is addressed in the discussion, which manufacturers should pay for the collection, sorting and recycling of their products. At the moment there is already such responsibility for other products such as packaging, but for textiles it takes even more attention.

The problem is clear: mixed fibers and the insufficient rewirability of many textiles make recycling more difficult and drive up the combustion rate. Consumers are both required to consume more sustainably, as well as to pay attention to labels such as the blue angel or the green button. Thinking when buying new clothing can help to alleviate the old clothing crisis and to promote waste avoidance.