Evelien Dils

The completion of the groundbreaking SCIRT project (System Circularity & Innovative Recycling of Textiles) represents a significant milestone in the shift towards a circular textile industry. After more than three years of intensive research, development, and collaboration among research organisations, fashion brands, textile manufacturers, and recycling companies, SCIRT has proven that a more sustainable fashion industry is within reach.

The SCIRT project launches its year-long awareness campaign. Gathering insight from reports and results from the research and trials conducted in the project, SCIRT will share educational and informative details on the textile industry, recycling and how to shop sustainably.

Barely 1 % of all worn clothing in Europe is recycled to a high standard. The rest is largely incinerated along with household waste. The logical answer to how to do things differently seems to be to improve the collection, sorting and recycling process. But it is not that simple, as the experts on circular economy at VITO know. ‘A real transition to a circular fashion economy can only be achieved if the change is systemic and occurs right across the value chains.'

In order to monitor the environment and climate in Europe, analyse the results and communicate new knowledge and insights, the European Environment Agency has a network of topic centres, each focusing on a specific aspect of European environment and climate policy.  VITO is involved in four of these European Topic Centres (ETC), in two of them even as coordinating partner. copyright banner image: sigita lapina picture 2050 eea

Textile consumption in Europe has on average the fourth highest impacts on the environment and climate, following consumption of food, housing and mobility. Ahead of the expected European Union (EU) strategy for sustainable and circular textiles, the European Environment Agency (EEA) published two briefings that look at measures to reduce those impacts, including on resource use, greenhouse gas emissions and microplastic pollution. The underpinning ETC/CE reports were coauthored by VITO.