Subject: Improving Textile Recycling

Proposer: Cllr West
Seconder: Cllr Mcleay

GREEN GROUP AMENDMENT

This Council:

1) Notes the importance of stopping waste at source, of reducing textile waste, re-using textiles and then recycling textiles for the environment and for the City, with profits from the recycling currently split 60-40% between the Council and local charities.

2) Notes that in November the City Environment, South Downs and the Sea Committee approved 54 additional containers for carton recycling and 21 new containers for WEEE recycling, but it did not also increase the number of locations or containers for textile recycling.

3) Further notes that residents have reported textile recycling containers overflowing with the textiles trying to be recycled, increasing the risk of contamination and fly tipping.

4) that while the European Union is currently implementing aspects of the ‘polluter pays’ principle, encouraging producers to contribute to the cost of managing waste generated by their products, the UK government is yet to enact and enforce a polluter pays principle, thereby delaying more meaningful action on waste

This counciltherefore resolves to:

5) Request an officer report brought to the City Environment, South Downs and the Sea Committee outlining options to increase the number of textile recycling points across Brighton and Hove and to increase the regularity of collection of textile recycling,

a. and that such a report include detail on the benefits of restarting the council’s circular economy working group, to reduce issues of textile waste at source, encourage re-use, repair and repurposing and enable communications on the harmful impact the overproduction of textiles for ‘fast fashion,’ to prevent recycling containers filling up.

b. how council can work with local charities and residents to highlight the problems fast fashion causes including through bulk donations of poor-quality clothes with poor re-sale ability, working with organisations such as Love Not Landfill [1] and WRAP [2].

c. to set out the council’s route map for a circular economy strategy, and highlight the essential work required to deliver these climate change reducing initiatives, and for Brighton & Hove City to truly embrace a sustainable economic future.

[1] https://www.lovenotlandfill.org/#problem

[2] https://wrap.org.uk/taking-action/textiles/initiatives/textiles-2030

Recommendations to read if carried:

This Council:

1) Notes the importance of stopping waste at source, of reducing textile waste, re-using textiles and then recycling textiles for the environment and for the City, with profits from the recycling currently split 60-40% between the Council and local charities.

3) Further notes that residents have reported textile recycling containers overflowing with the textiles trying to be recycled, increasing the risk of contamination and fly tipping.

This counciltherefore resolves to:

a. and that such a report include detail on the benefits of restarting the council’s circular economy working group, to reduce issues of textile waste at source, encourage re-use, repair and repurposing and enable communications on the harmful impact the overproduction of textiles for ‘fast fashion,’ to prevent recycling containers filling up.