The user and end-of-life phases deserve increased attention in the textile and apparel sectors, especially in light of their environmental impact. The knowledge we have on how the consumer deals with these phases are limited. A three year project – Textile Waste as a Resource – was launched in Norway last year taking a rather “back-ward” approach in the life cycle assessment (LCA).

The research project, which is headed by SIFO – the Norwegian Institute for Consumer Research in cooperation with among others NICE Fashion (Nordic Initiative Clean and Ethical) – will among other studies follow the consumption patterns of 16 selected families in relation to apparel. These families have for six months collected the clothing that they plan to dispose of and Ph D Research Fellow Kirsi Laitala is embarking on her second round of in-depth interviews, where the goal is to find out what exactly triggers this process. This will be done through looking at diaries kept by the families, face-to-face questioning and technical analysis of the discarded textiles in SIFO’s laboratory. In an effort to involve more consumers, SIFO has also posted a questionnaire on the Internet, where they encourage the general public to answer questions about clothing – and care-habits.

Technical research has also been initiated in the area of reducing water, chemicals and energy-consumption in wash and care. The preliminary results are promising, especially in reducing the washing-temperatures, but also when looking at cleanliness in comparison with how full machines are loaded with laundry.

One of the main questions being posed is ‘How may a reverse life cycle approach to ecological design increase our understanding of the potentials and barriers for change?’ With the working-title “From textile waste to material resources in a grave to cradle perspective” the project aims to use a multidisciplinary approach looking at how waste reduction can contribute to reducing the material flow and turning waste into material resources. This is a project that aims to reverse the classical LCA and start with what we generally see as the end result.

Another important question posed by the research project will be what the role of political authorities will be in overcoming barriers for change and how are they able to stimulate the reduction of the material flow. In Norway it is now forbidden to dispose of textile products on land-fills. The current “solution” is to burn all organic waste – including textiles – in order to produce energy. If this is a good solution for the end-of-life phase remains open to discussion, but coming up with alternatives involves many issues – from proper and relevant labelling of content and chemical treatments to how one can make clothes more durable.
Dissemination of findings and up-dates on progress of the research project can be found on the website.