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Addressing plastic waste and pollution from the textile and apparel sector: consultation document

Objectives

Canadians are demanding that plastic waste and pollution be addressed. Commitments are being made across all sectors. Measures are being introduced to increase the circularity of plastic products, to keep them in the economy and out of the environment. Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) has the intent of engaging all actors in the textile and apparel sector in Canada. ECCC has prepared this consultation document to solicit feedback on the key elements of a proposed roadmap for addressing plastic waste and pollution from the textile and apparel sector. This could include which actions could be envisaged. These actions, acting at various points in the waste management hierarchy and along the textile value chain, would be undertaken by different levels of government as well as industry, academia and civil society.

This consultation document:

ECCC is seeking input from stakeholders, including:

ECCC encourages further distribution of this document.

The Government of Canada is committed to providing interested or affected parties with the opportunity to consult at all stages of the roadmap development process. All parties may comment in writing by mail or email to the addresses provided in the “Contact information” section of this document.

ECCC will consider all written responses received during the consultation period prior to drafting and publishing the draft roadmap.

Background on textiles and apparel

Textiles are composed of natural fibres (cotton, wool, etc.) and artificial fibres (polyester, rayon, nylon, viscose, acrylic, etc.).Footnote 1  Today, about 80 billion new pieces of clothing are made globally each year—400% more than 20 years ago.Footnote 2  Synthetic fibres drive global fibre demand. Polyester alone represents around 54% of total global fibre production. Recycled polyester fibre (mainly made from recycled plastic bottles) makes up nearly 15% of polyester’s production.Footnote 3

Canada’s textile, apparel, and accessories sectors

A 2019 report by Innovation, Science, and Economic Development Canada detailing Canada’s textile manufacturing industry found that it produces higher-value products, such as:

A 2022 report by Deloitte on the Canadian textile manufacturing sector provided statistics on Canada’s textile market. It also identified target areas where the Canadian textile industry could grow. It indicated that investments were needed in innovation, sustainable production, automation, expanding into new markets, and other technological transformations to maintain its competitiveness.Footnote 5  These studies did not examine how circularity measures could increase competitiveness and reduce environmental impact.

The apparel industry in Canada comprises several sub-sectors. It starts with the creative design process and through to apparel manufacturing, wholesale and retail. It then goes to the end-of-life processes such as apparel reuse, repurposing, repair, recycling or waste. These sub-sectors, defined by the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) are:

Table 1 below shows employment and establishment numbers for a few of the industries listed above. The retail sector is larger than other domestic sub-sectors. 95% of apparel bought in Canada, or $12 billion worth of apparel, is manufactured in and imported from other countries.Footnote 6

The multi-sector creative chain process accounts for an estimated 222,190 employees and 47,728 establishments in 2023 in Canada (Table 1).

Table 1: Number of Canadian employees and establishments, by industry, 2023

NAICS Code Employees Establishments
Textile Mills [313] 5,913 1,120
Textile Product Mills [314] 8,507 1,373
Artificial and Synthetic Fibres and Filament Manufacturing [325220] No data 43
Clothing Manufacturing [315] 15,787 9,008
Leather and Allied Products Manufacturing [316] 1,982 967
Textile, clothing and footwear merchant wholesalers [4141] 23,903 10,155
Clothing and Clothing Accessory Retailers [448] 166,098 28,269
Department stores – [4521] No data 494
Second-Hand Goods (except machinery and automotive) Merchant Wholesalers (NAICS 41893) No data 423
Dry cleaning and laundry services [8123] No data 286
Total 222,190 47,728

Quantities of waste from the textile and apparel sector

According to Statistics Canada’s Pilot physical flow account for plastic material, around 290 kilotons of synthetic textile products (e.g., made of polyester, nylon, PVC, and/or acrylic) were purchased in Canada in 2020. In that same year, around 280 kilotons were disposed as waste. In 2020, textiles in Canada made up the fifth-largest category of plastic waste in absolute numbers discarded (Figure 1) – after plastic packaging, other products, electrical and electronic equipment, and vehicles. Very few textile and apparel products in Canada are recycled.

Figure 1: Sector breakdown of plastics discarded in Canada in 2020 (Statistics Canada)

Long description

This diagram is a pie chart showing the sector breakdown of plastics discarded in Canada in 2020. Packaging represents 41% of plastic discarded since 2020. It is followed by:

  • other products at 25%
  • vehicles at 15%
  • electrical and electronic equipment at 9%
  • textiles at 6%
  • construction materials at 3%
  • agriculture film at 1%

Textile and apparel waste comes mainly from two sources: the residential and the industrial, commercial, and institutional (IC&I) sectors. Fashion Takes Action, along with Seneca College and AET Group Inc., conducted waste audits in Ontario in order to estimate the quantity and quality of textiles from Ontario’s residential waste stream. Sampling more than 2,846 single family households and 35 multi-residential complexes, they estimated that the most conservative percentage of textiles ending up in the residential waste stream was 4.43% of all waste.Footnote 7  This was extrapolated to a total amount of 176 kilotons in Ontario in 2018.Footnote 8  This percentage reflected six categories of textile waste and pollution: clothing, home textiles, footwear, accessories, soft toys, and others.Footnote 9  Fashion Takes Action used this Ontario number as a proxy to estimate that Canadian households disposed of 480 kilotons of textile waste in 2018.Footnote 10

Fashion Takes Action applied the conservative estimate of 4.43% of textile waste from the residential sector’s waste stream to the IC&I sector. They estimated that the non-residential waste stream accounts for around 659 kilotons of textile apparel waste disposed of in Canada annually.Footnote 11  Research done by Cheminfo Inc. in 2022 estimated that Canada consumed 1.3 million tonnes of apparel 2021. Of that, almost 1.1 million tonnes were disposed. The remainder was reused and a small portion was recycled into rags.Footnote 12  Additionally, Cheminfo Inc. estimated that between approximately 479 and 624 kilotons of carpet flows to landfills per year.Footnote 13

Impacts on and risks to the environment

Textile and apparel production has a high ecological footprint due to high energy, water, chemical use, the generation of waste, and microfibre shedding during laundering.Footnote 14  The global textile and apparel industry is estimated to be responsible for 10% of global carbon emissions, more than international flights and maritime shipping combined.Footnote 15  Furthermore, it is estimated that the fashion industry consumed 79 trillion litres of water per year, and is responsible for about 20% of industrial water pollution from textile treatment and dyeing.Footnote 16 ,Footnote 17

Synthetic microfibres are a concern as they are widely released and distributed in the ocean environment as microplastics.Footnote 18  When washed, synthetic clothing sheds microfibers.Footnote 19  Globally, synthetic microfibres released from domestic laundries are the predominant source of microplastic pollution. They account for at least 35% of microplastics in the ocean.Footnote 20  Research indicates that worldwide, every environment and habitat is polluted with microfibres.Footnote 21,Footnote 22 ,Footnote 23 

In October 2020, the Science Assessment of Plastic Pollution (the Science Assessment) summarized the current state of the science regarding the potential impacts of plastic pollution on the environment and human health. The Assessment was done in order to inform future research and decision making on plastic pollution in Canada. It found that plastic pollution is ubiquitous in the environment, and that macroplastic pollution poses an ecological hazard, including physical harm, to some animals and their habitat. The Science Assessment recommended pursuing action to reduce macroplastics and microplastics that end up in the environment, in accordance with the precautionary principle.

Other environmental impacts include impacts to air quality from microplastic pollution. The primary source of microplastic particles in indoor air is thought to be the shedding of polymeric textile fibres from clothing, furniture, carpeting, and household goods due to wear and tear or abrasion.Footnote 24,Footnote 25   Researchers found synthetic textile fibres on a variety of surfaces, including outdoor surfaces, suggesting that clothing and other fabrics may be additional sources of microplastics in both outdoor and indoor air.Footnote 26,Footnote 27,Footnote 28  

Current actions

Existing government risk management tools and actions to prevent pollution and increase circulation in the textile and apparel sector

Federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal governments share the responsibility for managing and reducing waste in Canada. Municipal governments manage the collection, recycling, composting, and disposal of household waste. The provincial and territorial authorities establish waste reduction policies and programs and approve and monitor waste management facilities and operations within their geographic boundaries. The federal government complements the activities of the other levels of government by controlling international and interprovincial movements of hazardous waste and hazardous recyclable material. The federal government can also use its regulatory and non-regulatory levers to reduce waste and pollution at all points along the life cycle of products, at a national level.

The federal and provincial government levels have taken very limited targeted prevention, diversion or recovery risk management actions for plastic waste and pollution from the textile and apparel sector at this time.

Federal, provincial and territorial governments collaborate to address environmental issues through the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME). In 2009, the CCME published a Canada-wide Action Plan on Extended Producer Responsibility (CAP-EPR). The plan lists textiles and carpet as Phase 2 items. They are to be addressed within eight years of adopting the CAP-EPR. Some studies, small pilot programs, and private initiatives by governments have been undertaken. For example, British Columbia has included mattresses in their Extended Producer Responsibility Five-Year Action Plan.Footnote 29,Footnote 30   The CCME’s Waste Reduction and Recovery Committee is currently working on guidance on how to prevent and manage plastic pollution found in storm- and wastewater. Given the presence of microfibres in wastewater, this guidance is expected to be of use to all levels of government across the country.

Some municipalities in Canada have implemented textile an­d apparel collection and recycling programs to divert textile waste from landfill. For example, the City of Markham implemented a curbside ban on textile material in 2017, and deployed safe, steel donation bins in high-traffic, well-lit areas.Footnote 31  To date, the program has diverted more than 9 kilotons of textile material away from landfill to charitable organizations.Footnote 32  In addition, other municipalities have indicated they are considering textile and apparel collection and diversion as they update long-term municipal solid waste plans.

The Government of Canada intends to establish a federal plastics registry that would require producers to report on the plastic products they put on the Canadian market. The registry would collect data on plastics in textiles, including quantities of textiles placed on the market and their end-of-life fate. It would also improve the transparency of the textile sector by indicating how much plastic is placed on the market and how the end of life of this plastic is managed. The registry would provide Canadians, businesses, and policymakers with a greater understanding of the plastics value chain in Canada. The data from the registry would help to identify gaps in that chain where further government action could accelerate transitioning a circular economy. A section 46 notice for the Federal Plastics Registry to create an inventory of data was published in the Canada Gazette, Part I, on April 20th, 2024.

Federal support

Textile and apparel waste and pollution

Since 2019, the federal government has worked with non-profit and other organizations to advance research and pilot recycling and waste diversion programs in the textile and apparel sector:

  1. Fashion Takes Action (FTA), a non-profit organization established in 2007, profiled the possibilities and pre-feasibility of developing a Canadian textile recycling industry. FTA estimated the absolute volume of synthetic and blended textiles and apparel in Canada’s landfills in 2018 was 360 kilotons and broke down this number into different types of clothing and non-residential textiles.Footnote 33  The study found that mechanical recycling is the most promising technology for a textile recycling industry in Canada as it has potential for economic viability.Footnote 34  The study also recommended several actions for governments to take to support textile circularity in Canada, such as:

FTA also demonstrated, through a mechanical recycling pilot, that synthetic and synthetic blended textile recycling using existing infrastructure was viable in Canada. They recovered 1000 kg of post-consumer textile waste for recycling into higher-value products. They also developed a guidance document on mechanical recycling in Canada to help stakeholders replicate the process and build new textile recycling supply chains in the future.

  1. The Government is supporting FTA’s Canadian Circular Textiles Consortium (CCTC), a platform to establish and connect stakeholders for circular textile projects to reduce duplication of effort and enhance collaboration. The CCTC has established working groups and sub committees have to undertake various projects related to policy and education, as well as research and pilots.
  1. The National Association for Charitable Textile Recycling (NACTR) analyzed the benefits of and support for textile reuse in Canada. The project highlighted opportunities for increasing the lifecycle of textiles that are “fit for reuse”, as well as diverting and minimizing the quantity of end-of-life textiles in Canadian landfills. NACTR developed a white paper that:
    • Identified alternatives for extending the life of post-consumer textiles
    • Showcased best practices
    • Identified current challenges, gaps and opportunities; and
    • Identified the economic, environmental and social benefits of textile reuse

NACTR also produced a Canada-wide material and economic flow analysis to map the movement and value of textiles along the supply chain. This analysis included collection routes, resale to consumers, and resale to textile graders, all which assist in quantifying the commercial value of the textile reuse market.

  1. Ocean Wise and the Plastics Lab studied microfibre pollution, evaluated microfibre characteristics and practices to reduce shedding, and explored public perceptions and public policy preferences toward mitigating microfibre pollution. Ocean Wise evaluated fibre size, shape and polymer identity in laundry effluent and receiving environments in Canada. They found that using colder water and front-loading washing machines can reduce textile shedding.Footnote 36
  1. ECCC collaborated with Simon Fraser University to obtain a statistically accurate portrait of the Canadian public’s behaviours, perceptions, attitudes, and policy preferences as they pertain to the microfibre pollution released from their household laundries. The study showed that the vast majority of Canadians (81%) support adopting precautionary measures against microfibre releases. The study also showed that information campaigns can motivate public support for policy action.Footnote 37
  1. ECCC, with the Standards Council of Canada, is supporting the textile and apparel sector to identify gaps and opportunities relating to supply chain transparency, sustainability, and environmental impacts of textiles. This includes chemicals in products, carbon footprints, and plastics. The study will produce recommendations on:

ECCC is interested in better understanding how to support the textiles and apparel sectors’ eco-performance and competitiveness in domestic and international markets. ECCC is interested in helping Canadian companies and consumers make informed decisions with the help of labels or certifications.

  1. The Government of Canada is supporting research from Ocean Diagnostics and the Raincoast Conservation Foundation. This group is updating the state of knowledge and advancing towards a solutions roadmap for Canada, providing the latest knowledge in microfibre pollution and guidance for mitigation. The Government of Canada is supporting a technical feasibility study of microfibre mitigation from laundry appliances with Ocean Wise. The aim is to:
    • Determine the suitability and willingness/ability of manufacturers to shift to various mitigation technologies
    • Conduct a pulse check on other actions taken elsewhere; and
    • Recommend future actions
  1. Through the Canadian Plastics Innovation Challenges, the Government of Canada has supported innovative solutions to address the challenge of plastic waste and pollution, including waste from textiles. Launched in February 2020, the Plastics Challenge: Textiles and Microfibers provided funding to develop of cost effective, energy efficient, and evidence-based innovations to improve the collection, processing, or recycling of plastic waste from textiles. This funding also supported innovations to improve the design of textile products to reduce the shedding of microfibers into the environment. The Challenge selected three proposals submitted by small and medium-sized Canadian enterprises. Their proponents received up to $150,000 to develop proofs of concept:
    • Tengiva (legal name CACITH Inc.) of Montreal, Quebec worked on developing a tool to trace, quantify and identify textile wastes and centralize stakeholders in a unique platform to facilitate collection, exchanges, distribution and market validation
    • Met-Tech Inc. of Burlington, Ontario worked on developing a low-cost process for chemical sorting, separation and the removal of dyes from waste textiles
    • Singular Solutions Inc. of North York, Ontario worked on developing a biosustainable additive that facilitates the biodegradation of plastic textile waste in long-term composting facilities

Workshop: Opportunities for circularity in apparel and textiles in Canada

On September 25, 2023, ECCC hosted a multi-stakeholder workshop to identify opportunities for circularity in the textile and apparel sector in Canada. Several municipalities, various charities involved in the collection and reuse of textiles in Canada, and other organizations participated. The focus of the workshop was on reducing domestic textile and apparel waste and export volumes. Through panels and breakout discussions, participants identified possible roles to support enhanced circularity at the stages of collection, triaging, and processing in Canada.

Workshop participants concluded that priority roles for the federal government are to fund projects, pilots, innovation, and research, specifically:

  1. Infrastructure: support the procurement and innovation of sorting equipment, storage, machines that sort and separate fibers, trucks, and bins
  2. Collaboration: support collaboration models across value chains and address funding gaps
  3. Research: support best practice case studies, circular business models, roadmaps, and research and development
  4. Projects: continue funding projects to help divert textiles, including pilot projects

Actions by other countries

Below are some examples of actions being taken in other jurisdictions on textile and apparel waste and pollution.

California is proposing the Responsible Textile Recovery Act of 2023, which would require producers, either individually or through the creation of one or more stewardship organizations, to establish a stewardship program for the collection and recycling of any apparel, textile, or textile-related article that is unsuitable for reuse by a consumer in its current state or condition.Footnote 38  California also administers the Carpet America Recovery Effort, where funds from the program are used to subsidize collection sites, transportation, and recycling of end-of-life carpets.Footnote 39

In March 2022, the European Commission adopted the EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles by 2030. The strategy aims to create a greener, more competitive sector that is more resistant to global shock.Footnote 40  The 2030 vision is that:

In July 2023, the European Commission proposed rules to make producers responsible for the full lifecycle of textile products and to support the sustainable management of textile waste across the EU.Footnote 41  The Commission proposed to introduce mandatory and harmonised extended producer responsibility (EPR) schemes for textiles in all EU member states. Producers would cover the costs of managing textile waste, giving them incentives to reduce waste and increase the circularity of textile products.Footnote 42  The proposal would promote research and development into innovative technologies for textile circularity and address the issue of illegal exports of textile waste.Footnote 43

In France, a national EPR scheme for textiles and footwear has been in place since 2008, when Refashion, a private, non-profit organization, was created to manage the EPR program.Footnote 44  Out of 715,290 tonnes of clothing and shoes placed onto the French market in 2021, 34% (244,448T tonnes) were collected under this program for recovery purposes, essentially for export.Footnote 45  In October 2023, France, through Refashion, launched a bonus scheme that offers discounts for consumers to repair their clothes and shoes instead of disposing them.Footnote 46  Additionally, France has adopted a law that will require all new washing machines to have microfibre filters by 2025. This would make it the first country to put in place regulations to reduce the amount of microfibre pollution.Footnote 47

Germany launched the Green Button Initiative in 2019, a government-run textile certification label attached to sustainable clothes.Footnote 48  To obtain the label, the company has to meet a total of 46 social and environment criteria, mainly focusing on wastewater and forced labour.Footnote 49  Seventy-eight companies in Germany have had products certified with the Green Button label since 2022.Footnote 50

The United Kingdom’s Waste and Resources Action Programme launched the Textiles 2030 Roadmap in April 2021. It aims to move the textile sector towards a sustainable and circular system by tackling greenhouse gas emissions as well as material and water usage in the sector.Footnote 51   In total, 17 businesses signed up for this voluntary agreement since 2022, outlining goals for design for circularity, implementation of circular business models, and closing the loop on materials.Footnote 52

China’s “Implementation Opinions on Accelerating the Recycling of Waste Textiles” indicates that by 2030 the government hopes to achieve a recycling rate of 30% for waste textiles, producing three million tonnes of recycled fibre per year.Footnote 53  The National Development and Reform Commission indicates that China was already recycling 20% of its 22 million tonnes of textile waste in 2020, producing around 1.5 million tonnes of recycled fibre.Footnote 54  Additionally, a new digital platform has been launched in China in 2023 to help identify and trace textile products through the supply chain.Footnote 55  It was reported that 26 organisations have already signed up to the “Reborn — China Fibre Zero Carbon Action 2023 — Sustainable Textiles Credible Platform” initiative.Footnote 56

Proposed environmental objective

The proposed environmental objective for a draft roadmap is to prevent textile and apparel waste (including microfibres) from going to landfill or incineration, or leaking into the environment as pollution. The draft roadmap will take a waste management hierarchy approach that keeps textiles and apparel in the circular economy for as long as possible. Taking the waste hierarchy into account, prioritizion will focus on redesign, reduce, reuse, repair, and recycling of products over energy recovery and landfilling.

Long description

The diagram is a downward facing pyramid displaying the waste management hierarchy. Starting off with waste prevention and then value recovery in the following order from most preferred/greatest value to least preferred/lowest value:

  1. Reduction
  2. Repair and reuse
  3. Remanufacture and refurbishment, and
  4. Recycling and energy recovery

Footnote 70 Potential federal role

The federal, provincial, territorial, and municipal governments share the responsibility for managing waste. Collaboration between all levels of government is required to prevent and reduce waste, and control plastic pollution, from the textile and apparel sector. The federal government proposes to develop this roadmap and play a coordination role in its implementation. This could include the development and implementation of potential federal measures to meet the proposed environmental objective described above.

The federal government will report back to stakeholders on these findings, the implementation of measures where possible, and overall implementation of the roadmap within five years of its final publication.

Proposed elements of a roadmap

The draft roadmap will outline and describe key issues for Canadian textile and apparel circularity, which may include the examples outlined below. The scope of the roadmap will consider the sub-sectors within the industry. For example, the scope will separate the sub-sectors of domestic textile manufacturing and the Canadian apparel industry. Apart from this distinction, the scope of the roadmap could include:

The draft roadmap will also outline potential solutions to these key issues to increase the circularity of the textile and apparel industry through actions that make the most difference for the environment over the long-term. These may include the examples provided below. It will identify who is best-placed to deliver solutions among different levels of government, industry, and other stakeholders. It will also identify at which points in the waste management hierarchy and along the textile value chain the solutions would be applied.

Issue: determining and quantifying the sources of textiles and apparel waste and pollution

The studies conducted by organizations such as Fashion Takes Action and Cheminfo Services Inc. use different methodologies and estimations due to the lack of available information. Impacts to air quality from microplastic pollution are not known. As such, more research is needed to refine quantities and types of textile waste and pollution coming from multiple sources, notably the IC&I sector and household waste, and to understand impacts. Given existing data, ECCC is using a range of 280-1,100 kilotons to quantify textile and apparel waste in Canada. Furthermore, it is using the range 479-624 kilotons of carpet waste. The goal is to refine this range to reflect more accurate data.

Potential solutions: support research in the textile and apparel sector

Actions could be taken to support further research. For example, the Government is supporting work done by Fashion Takes Action to:

The federal government will make data by the proposed federal plastics registry available to provide valuable and consistent data on plastics in primary and secondary textile markets in Canada. The registry would enable research to be more accurate will encourage further study of the details of plastics in textile and apparel markets.

Questions

  1. Do you have data on quantities of textile waste and pollution from any source(s) in the IC&I (e.g., from hospitals, schools, restaurants, hotels, etc.) and/or household waste?

Issue: extending the life of a textile or apparel product (e.g., durability, reuse, repair)

The textile and apparel industry can separate durability into two categories:

Some brand owners have taken voluntary action to include physical durability in their design, for example, by creating laboratory durability testing protocols.Footnote 58  Brand owners have sought emotional durability by developing materials and methods that create stronger attachments between consumers and their clothing.Footnote 59  Increasing durability plays a key role in transitioning the sector towards a circular economy.

There is an existing well-established domestic reuse market for textile and apparel products in Canada, through charities and municipalities supporting collection and reuse. However, clothing repair by consumers has declined.Footnote 60  This could be due to the lack of sewing skills and the time required to repair clothing.Footnote 61  Fast fashion, often cheap and lacking quality, can discourage consumers from repairing old garments and encourage disposal as consumers perceive that repair is not worth the time and cost.Footnote 62  Repair by individuals is the most common form of clothing repair, with women being more engaged in mending.Footnote 63  Studies have suggested that bringing back education on how to repair clothing and providing access to repair tools would encourage people to undertake repair activities by increasing their confidence.Footnote 64  Additionally, measures to incentivize and encourage consumers to repair through tailoring services may increase the activity’s uptake. Furthermore, studies show that cost savings are a significant reason why people undertake repair activities.Footnote 65  Life-extension activities such as reuse can also save municipalities money on landfill dumping fees.Footnote 66

Potential solutions: extend the life of apparel products

ECCC is building on research from the National Association for Charitable Textile Recycling to:

Another area of interest could be developing standards for apparel products. For example, standards could be developed for reducing contamination such as metals, glues, and chemicals of concern (e.g. PFAS) in apparel to increase recyclability. Standards for assessing durability could also be considered. To boost reparability as a potential solution, support for repair shops and incentives to increase repair capacity could be envisaged.

Questions

  1. How could Canadian entities develop standards for durability? Where in the supply chain should be the focus to achieve the greatest effect on reducing waste and pollution?
  2. What are the risks to the industry in developing and following standards for durability?
  3. Are there other actions that could be taken to increase textile and apparel repair activities in Canada?
  4. How might charities and municipalities play an expanded role in collection and reuse?

Issue: textile and apparel waste management

There are few voluntary retail take-back programs for clothing in Canada, and there are no national or provincial EPR programs for textile and apparel products.

Potential solutions: improve waste management through take-back programs

Canadian entities and/or levels of government could develop one or more take-back systems managed by one or more producer responsibility organizations to collect, reuse, repair, repurpose and/or process textile and apparel products. These potential programs could set targets for collection, reuse, repair, or recycling of these products under take-back systems. Assessing whether and how EPR schemes from other countries can be applied in a Canadian context could be undertaken. The assessment could take a waste management hierarchy approach. It could examine collection of textile and apparel products under a take-back program in Canada that diverts towards reuse and recycling efforts locally, that strives to reduce diversion to other countries for reprocessing to keep their environmental footprint low. Increasing and improving textiles management and circularity in Canada may also reduce the volumes of textiles that are currently exported abroad.

The Canadian Circular Textiles Consortium (CCTC), a stakeholder group composed of industry exporters, provincial governments and ENGOs, are collaborating to explore mechanisms to advance circularity in the textile and apparel sector. This includes ways to support EPR and take-back programs in Canada.

Questions

  1. Could take-back programs and/or EPR systems for textiles work in Canada? If not, what are the limitations or challenges? How can members of the Canadian supply chain (e.g., brand owners, recyclers, repairers, recyclers, etc.) come together to create a take-back system in Canada?
  2. What kind of collaboration needs to happen, and who could, or would, oversee these programs effectively? What are the needed skills and investments?

Issue: limited textile and apparel recycling in Canada

Overall, there is little recycling of textile and apparel waste in Canada. Apart from a few facilities in Canada recycling polyester and aramid (heat-resistant and durable synthetic fibres) textiles and apparel, most of the waste is landfilled, incinerated, turned into rags, or baled and exported. Product design impacts recycling rates for textile and apparel products. Contaminants such as buttons, zippers, adhesives, and mixed fibres are not typically compatible with current recycling facilities. By incorporating recyclability in product designs, these products can avoid landfill or incineration and can be recycled. Some brand owners have been developing apparel that from a single type of polymer that can be recycled.Footnote 67  Design for recyclability can keep textile and apparel products in the circular economy.

Currently, the only type of textile fibre recycling that exists in Canada is through a mechanical process. Fibres are recycled through the shredding, which breaks down the fibres for use for nonwoven recycled fabrics. After each mechanical recycling process, the fibres shorten and weaken. Weavers have to mix the reclaimed fibres with virgin fibres to increase the fabric strength and fabric consistency.Footnote 68  The recycled fibres could have undesirable physical properties (muted colours, pilling, lack of structural integrity, etc.) for use in apparel production, compared to virgin fibres. Applications other than new apparel can use mechanically recycled textile and apparel fibres, such as in insulation or automotive applications.

Textile fibres can be chemically recycled. However, in Canada, the technologies that work to separate natural and artificial fibre blends, dissolve, and reconstitute fibres are not widespread, nor are expected to scale up for some time.

Potential solutions: support textile recycling infrastructure

A key area for potential action could focus on supporting the development of textile and apparel recycling infrastructure in Canada, aiming to:

For example, guidance documents or standards for recyclability and recycling activities could be developed. Voluntary commitments and goals from industry could also be set and implemented.

Questions

  1. Do you know of any proposed technology (commercial or pre-commercial; please describe the technology and, if pre-commercial, include technology readiness level) to enable automation of sorting and grading processes, and/or identification and sorting based on fibre type and content? What are common issues with these technologies that impact their accuracy or speed? How can these issues be overcome?
  2. With recycled content being incorporated into more products, manufacturers are using more rPET sourced from bottles, which is the preferred resin type for most polyester blends. How do you expect this to affect textile and apparel manufacturing? Does the sector expect shortage of rPET for the textile and apparel sector? If so, how are you going to secure rPET for your manufacturing process?
  3. How could demand for recycled fiber be scaled up to make recycling textile and apparel products viable and economical?
  4. Where do the opportunities and end-markets for recycled textile and apparel fibres in Canada lie?
  5. How could standards for recyclability be developed, and how could industry be encouraged in developing and following these standards?

Issue: microfibre pollution

Microfibres may include synthetic and natural fibres originating from multiple sources. Research is increasingly pointing to shedding of textiles in home laundry as the most important source.Footnote 69  Annually, Canadian and US households release an estimated 878 tonnes of microfibres into bodies of water through laundry activities.Footnote 70  Research is being conducted to see if microfibres (including natural fibres) have negative impacts on animal lifecycles through ingestion.

Potential solutions: addressing microfibre pollution

Potential actions could be drawn from the solutions roadmap that Ocean Diagnostics and the Raincoast Conservation Foundation is developing. In addition, preinstallating washing machine filters to reduce microfibre shedding during laundering activities, or developing design standards to reduce microfibre shedding from clothing could be undertaken.

Questions

  1. How could public awareness about negative environmental impacts of microfibers releases be communicated to the public?
  2. Should product performance standards be developed for microfibre shedding for textiles and apparel products? If so, what could these standards include? What is the industry’s view on this approach, and who should lead this work?
  3. Should there be labelling programs or standards that indicate the amount of microfibers shed from a piece of clothing during a single wash? Should there be design standards to specify the maximum acceptable amount of microfibres shedding from washing machines using standard temperature and spin cycles?
  4. Should action be taken to ensure new washing machines have factory installed filters?

Cross-cutting considerations

ECCC will consider economic and safety when developing the roadmap elements. Particular attention should be given to:

Consultation questions

Below are the questions and areas of interest identified in the proposed elements of the roadmap section for which ECCC is seeking input.

Areas of potential action

Support research in the textile and apparel sector

Question for input

1. Do you have data on quantities of textile waste and pollution from any source(s) in the industrial, commercial, and institution sector (e.g., from hospitals, schools, restaurants, hotels, etc.) and/or household waste?

Extend the life of apparel products

Questions for input

2. How could Canadian entities develop standards for durability? Where in the supply chain should be the focus to achieve greatest effect on reducing waste and pollution?

3. What are the risks to the industry in developing and following standards for durability?

4. Are there other actions that could be taken to increase textile and apparel repair activities in Canada?

5. How might charities and municipalities play an expanded role in collection and reuse?

Improve waste management through take-back programs

Questions for input

6. Could take-back programs and/or EPR systems for textiles work in Canada? If not, what are the limitations or challenges? How can members of the Canadian supply chain (e.g., brand owners, recyclers, repairers, recyclers, etc.) come together to create a take-back system in Canada?

7. What kind of collaboration needs to happen, and who could, or would, oversee these programs effectively? What are the needed skills and investments?

Support textile recycling infrastructure

Questions for input

8. Do you know of any proposed technology (commercial or pre-commercial; please describe the technology and, if pre-commercial, include technology readiness level) to enable automation of sorting and grading processes, and/or identification and sorting based on fibre type and content? What are the common issues with these technologies that impact their accuracy or speed, and how can these issues be overcome?

9. With recycled content mandates coming soon for plastic packaging, including rPET, which is the preferred resin type for most polyester blends, how do you expect this to affect textile manufacturing? Does the sector expect shortage of rPET for the textile and apparel sector? If so, how are you going to secure rPET for your manufacturing process?

10. How could demand for recycled fiber be scaled up to make recycling textile and apparel products viable and economical?

11. Where do the opportunities and end-markets for recycled textile and apparel fibres in Canada lie?

12. How could standards for recyclability be developed, and what are the risks to industry in developing and following these standards?

Addressing microfibre pollution

Questions for input

13. How could public awareness about negative environmental impacts of microfibers releases be communicated to the public?

14. Should product performance standards be developed for microfibre shedding for textiles and apparel products? If so, what could these standards include? What is the industry’s view on this approach and who should lead this work?

15. Should there be labelling programs or standards that indicate the amount of microfibers shed from a piece of clothing during a single wash? Should there be design standards to specify the maximum acceptable amount of microfibres shedding from washing machines using standard temperature and spin cycles?

16. Should actions be taken to ensure new washing machines have factory installed filters?

Next steps

The federal government will manage the development and coordination of this roadmap. It commits to report back to stakeholders on:

ECCC invites industry and other interested stakeholders to submit comments on the content of this consultation document or to provide other information that would help inform decision-making. They are also invited to submit information on how they wish to receive information from the Government of Canada.

ECCC will plan a one-day webinar with key industry stakeholders, NGOs, and provinces and territories. ECCC will develop a what-we-heard report summarizing the input received throughout the consultation process. ECCC will circulate information on the webinar in the same manner as this consultation document. 

Please submit comments prior to September 1, 2024.

Contact information

By mail:
Environment and Climate Change Canada
Place Vincent Massey, 9th Floor
351 St. Joseph Boulevard
Gatineau Quebec
K1A 0H3
By Email: plastiques-plastics@ec.gc.ca

*Please include “Consultation – addressing plastic waste and pollution from the textile and apparel sector” in the subject line of your email or document.

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