» NMR textile project 2. A Nordic strategy for collection, sorting, reuse and recycling of textiles

PROJECT

Project leader

Kari-Anne Lyng

Duration

01/06/2013 -

31/12/2014

Project manager

The Nordic Waste Group (NAG)

NMR textile project 2. A Nordic strategy for collection, sorting, reuse and recycling of textiles

he aim of the project is to develop a proposal for a common Nordic strategy for improving infrastructure for collection, sorting and reuse/recycling of textiles in the Nordic region that can also represent a competitive advantage for Nordic business within the textile sector. This strategy could represent a basis for Nordic Governments and other stakeholders for developing possible new incentives, instruments and measures that can support better infrastructure and new capacities based on expected demand and international market situation/competition.

The Nordic strategy shall focus on the needs to develop a recycling capacity in an integrated total system where reuse will be given a higher priority according to the waste hierarchy.

In all Nordic countries there is a great potential for increased reuse and recycling of textiles ending up in the residual waste streams. In all countries there is a collection based mainly on volunteer activity and reuse of textiles. In order to develop more resource efficient systems there is a need to collect more textiles and ensure optimal solutions for sorting and reuse/recycling. Textiles more suitable for recycling than reuse can to a larger extent be included in existing collection systems.

Today most central sorting facilities for textiles are located in Eastern Europe with low labor cost for manual sorting. The fractions most suitable for recycling are also exported outside the Nordic region. There is a limited industrial material recycling capacity in Europe. In this perspective, a main question is whether there is a potential to build up a Nordic capacity for mechanical recycling in an industrial perspective.