Wednesday 21 October 2015

€3.6m project to cut carbon footprint of clothing

A sustainable textile project worth €3.6 million (£2.6m) has been launched.

The three-year scheme, led by UK environmental charity WRAP, aims to reduce the carbon, water and waste footprints of clothing in Europe.

The European Clothing Action Plan (ECAP) will work with brands, retailers, manufacturers, recycling organisations, charities and consumers to design clothes that last longer.

It also aims to ensure less clothing goes to incineration and landfill and hopes to divert more than 90,000 tonnes per year across Europe by March 2019.

It also hopes to encourage people to buy less clothing and use them for longer.

The initial countries ECAP will be active in include Italy, Romania and the UK and plans to expand into Asia.

Liz Goodwin, WRAP CEO, said: “Finding more sustainable ways to work with textiles is an area set to deliver huge benefits – both economic and environmental.

"To be leading on a project of this magnitude is something I am very excited about and applying tried and tested approaches such as voluntary agreements and consumer campaigns across Europe will really take our expertise to the next level."

This year H&M launched a clothing line made entirely from sustainably-sourced materials.