Do you recycle ALL your clothes?

Goodwill is synonymous with clothing reuse and they were just approved to open a 20,000 sq ft store in New Lenox by February 2012. On a similar note, the Forest Preserve of Will County recently approved USAgain to place 22 Collection Boxes at each of the Forest Preserve sites.  Both these groups accept textiles for reuse and recycling.  

Most people believe they can only donate clothing in good condition but this is not true. The federal government estimates 85 percent of textiles are discarded.  That’s a lot of fabric taking up landfill space across the country.  Consider that textiles include used clothing, worn shoes, faded drapes, tablecloths, frayed towels, socks with holes, pants with broken zippers, stained shirts along with items in good condition and you can see why so much might be considered worthless.

Like empty aluminum cans, cotton can be recycled countless times and polyester is basically the same plastic as a 2 liter bottle.  To discard these materials, regardless of their condition, is unnecessary.  Items that can’t be resold in the local area are often recycled or sent to other countries where economic standards aren’t as high.

Goodwill is a non-profit that operates stores in Bolingbrook, Joliet, Naperville, Orland Park, Woodridge and more. Each of these stores provides over 40 jobs.  They provide a place for people to shop for gently used clothing, toys, kitchen and home accessories at discounted prices.  This is a great way for people to reduce the energy needed to make new items while also aiding families in economic distress.

USAgain is a for-profit business that pays the host site a small amount for each ton of textiles collected. They employ drivers and operate a sorting facility in nearby West Chicago. They supply several resale-clothing chains, send approximately 25 percent of materials overseas and recycle the rest.

Recycled clothing may become furniture stuffing, insulation, automobile soundproofing, carpet padding, industrial rags and more. It’s important to recycle all our unwanted textiles, even those with missing buttons and broken zippers!

Links to a variety of sites and providers are on willcountygreen.com.