RMIT & Australian retailers partner to study fashion waste

The study, supported by the Queensland department of environment, science and innovation, is designed to better inform responsive policy making and directly impact Australia’s fashion waste.

Despite textile waste offering a valuable circular resource, in Australia only seven per cent of discarded textiles are recycled. Instead, an estimated 50 per cent of household clothing or textile waste is placed in the ‘red bin’.

This is believed to be one of the single biggest contributors of textile waste ending up in landfill, as per the study.

With limited research in this space, the ‘Consumer Clothing Use & Disposal Behaviours’ study, led by professor Alice Payne from the school of fashion and textiles, will aim to uncover whether this is an issue of consumer education, convenience and availability or additional factors that need to be addressed.

Minister for the environment, the Great Barrier Reef, Science and Innovation, Leanne Linard, said the study aligned with the Queensland government’s vision of a zero-waste society.

“This research provides an opportunity to inform and influence actions that continue our transition to a circular economy for textiles in Queensland,” Linard said.

“Extending the lifespan of clothing and the materials they are made from means we can reduce environmental impacts and demand on natural resources, contributing to a more sustainable future. With 50 per cent of post-consumer textiles, including wearable clothing, finding their way into waste bins, our goal is to combat this waste of textile resources by better understanding consumer behaviour and attitudes to inform further support for extending the lifespan of clothing,” added Linard.

Designed by a team of RMIT experts in sustainable fashion, consumer behaviour and marketing, the study will commence in May with an early release of a preliminary survey issued by both the Queensland government and RMIT University. The survey findings will then be incorporated and released in the second half of 2024.

“Understanding how people acquire, use and dispose of their clothing is key to developing the right initiatives to support sustainable change,” Payne said.

Kmart group managing director Ian Bailey said textile waste needed to be tackled through collaboration and partnership across all stakeholders.

“We know people want to do the right thing when it comes to clothing they no longer need or use. This study will help provide answers for why discarded textiles end up in the bin, so we can work together on the right solutions that work for our customers,” Bailey said.

“With over 90 per cent of Australians shopping with Kmart and Target, leveraging our customer footprint to gather the essential insights to inform smart, practical solutions is the kind of direct action needed to get after this issue at pace and at scale.”

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (RR)