Â鶹´«Ã½

Letter: What to do with a huge mass of binned clothes? (2)

Published 5 December 2018

From Toby Bateson, Truro, Cornwall, UK

You say that 10 million tonnes of landfill is generated from binned clothes in the US alone every year. Given a population of around 325 million, that is an average of 30.8 kilograms of clothes thrown away per person, per year: 68 pairs of jeans or 616 socks. Is this statistic pants?

The editor writes:
• It is a startling figure, from . Most of the 10 million tonnes of textiles comprises discarded clothing. Smaller sources include furniture, carpets, tyres, footwear, sheets and towels.

Issue no. 3207 published 8 December 2018

Â鶹´«Ã½ issue 3207 cover

Sign up to our weekly newsletter

Receive a weekly dose of discovery in your inbox. We'll also keep you up to date with Â鶹´«Ã½ events and special offers.

Sign up
Piano Exit Overlay Banner Mobile Piano Exit Overlay Banner Desktop