America throws away two quadrillion pounds of used clothing each year. Heaps of wasted clothing, often still in great condition, languish in landfills. Purchasing and reusing second hand clothing will significantly reduce the severe toll placed on the environment through the production of new clothing.
Reusing clothing is great for the environment because there are no new materials, fuel, or energy spent in manufacturing. Besides the environmental benefits, you can often get terrific bargains when shopping for used clothing. It takes patience, but you can find inexpensive treasures in the aisles of your local consignment or vintage clothing store. Additionally, organizations like Goodwill perform a great social service by using 84% of their revenues to fund employment and training programs for people with disabilities.
Our goal should be to waste as little as possible by keeping clothes in our closets and out of landfills. Buying used clothing is an easy, economical, and stylish way of helping the environment.
Take Action / Next Steps
Buy used clothing without leaving your house! Shopgoodwill.com is an online auction site created and managed by Goodwill, selling many quality items at the same low prices that you would find in a Goodwill store.
Did you know that you can save lots of money by shopping at used clothing
stores?
Second hand clothing shops are the bargain hunter’s dream. Check out the Salvation
Army’s Valuation Guide to see examples of the exceptionally low prices that used clothing stores can feature.
Did you know that the average American throws out 67.9 pounds of used clothing per year?
This adds up to millions of tons of clothing thrown into landfills each year, reports the Charity
Guide.
Did you know the textile recycling industry prevents 2.5 billion pounds of wasted clothing
and textiles each year?
85% of wasted clothing is sent to landfills, where clothes occupy 4% of all
landfill space, according to the Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles Association.
SOURCES :
1.Council for Textile Recycling. “Don’t Overlook Textiles!” Available from: http://www.textilerecycle.org/ [17 August, 2008]
