Recycling your shoes can help reduce your carbon footprint!
In 2009/10, residents in the Borough of
Broxbourne recycled over 200 tonnes of unwanted clothes and shoes
at recycling banks located across the Borough. It is
calculated that this has reduced carbon emissions, and the
Borough’s carbon footprint by 2,200 tonnes. This is equivalent to
the amount of carbon produced by an aeroplane with 200 passengers
travelling to Sydney, Australia, six times.
Textiles collected from the Borough’s clothing
banks are diverted from disposal reducing their potential carbon
emissions. They are initially collected, sorted according to style
and sold for reuse in a number of charity shops. Where the clothes
are not fit for reuse, they are recycled back into raw materials
used to make new clothes and shoes. The funds raised have
provided international aid to a number of the poorest regions in
the world. These benefits highlight the global impact that
recycling textiles in the Borough can have.
The information above been provided by
TRAID (Textile Recycling for Aid and
International Development), who provide a textiles recycling
bank in Fawkon Walk, Hoddesdon. This recycling bank alone
collected 4 tonnes of material in 2009/10, reducing the carbon
footprint by 44 tonnes. The TRAID recycling scheme provides
assistance across the world helping to reduce social, economic and
environmental impacts. A number of other textiles recycling
banks are located across the Borough at the Council’s recycling
centres and selected sites, including banks operated by SCOPE,
Salvation Army and Oxfam, all of which recycle and reuse clothes
and shoes for the benefit of those less well off at home and
abroad.
The Council would like to thank residents for
their continued recycling efforts and encourages residents to
recycle as much as they can to increase the recycling rate and
further reduce the Borough’s carbon footprint.
For more information on the recycling
facilities provided in the Borough of Broxbourne, or the location
of nearby textile recycling banks, please visit the ‘environment and planning’ section or call
the helpline on 01992 785577.
Page last updated:
10/18/2010