Cambodia’s textile industry generates approximately 140,000 tonnes of textile waste each year, most of which is either disposed of in landfills or incinerated. Textile waste poses various negative impacts on our environment as well as the people involved.
According to a recent report ‘Bound by Bricks’ by LICADHO (Cambodian Human Rights NGO), the textile waste from garment manufacturers ending up as incineration material in Cambodian brick factories (kilns) highlights a current lack of commitment from fashion brands to address the issue. The report features compelling evidence regarding environmental pollution as well as health risks for the kilns workers amidst the burning of these materials and underscores the lack of traceability, security, and sustainable practices in handling post-industrial textile waste in Cambodia; reflecting the dire need for immediate action.
Limited textile waste management processes are a clear missed opportunity for Cambodia as the recycled textile market is projected to be worth around $8 billion by 2030. Key reasons for this missed opportunity are a general lack of awareness on textile recycling, and the lack of technical capability and equipment to structure recycling channels.
By initiating this project, titled “Textile Waste Improvement Programme For Circularity (WIP4C)” the German Development Cooperation GIZ has been leading efforts to structure the various stakeholders that will play a role in the future recycling ecosystems: recyclers themselves, as well as brands, garment factories, logistic providers, line ministries and other public agencies.
The project is initiated and commissioned by GIZ FABRIC, which will be implemented by Closed Loop Fashion in partnership with Sevea and Reverse Resources is aimed to tackle the issue of textile waste in Cambodia through better waste management practices at 21 local garment manufacturers. The participating factories have been nominated by six of the largest fashion brands, furthermore two recyclers have been identified as key partners, other partners include TAFTAC (Cambodian Ministry of Environment, Textile, Apparel, Footwear & Travel Goods Association in Cambodia) and Global Fashion Agenda.
Closed Loop Fashion jointly with Sevea will assess and implement the following activities in the framework of the project:
(1) Textile waste mappings and waste management assessments at the factories
(2) Identification and implementation of corrective actions
(3) Facilitating training and capacity building on Textile Waste Management (TWM), Circular Economy principles, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), coming regulations and the EU Waste Directive
(4) Digital textile waste tracking using the Reverse Resources Software-as-a-Service Platform
As key implementation partner, Closed Loop Fashion is enthusiastic about being part of this pilot project with the goal of creating a lasting and replicable outcome that promotes circularity in the Cambodian textile industry and beyond.
