The summary LCA, which highlights the key insights and takeaways from the full life cycle assessment submitted to the European Commission, summarises the key environmental impact findings from the T-REX project, emphasising the potential implications of circular value chains for the textile industry.   

Key takeaways:

• Textile recycling has strong potential to reduce the environmental impacts associated with fibre production. However, the magnitude of these benefits depends heavily on both the type of material being recycled and the specific recycling technology used. Different fibre types and recycling processes vary in their efficiency, yield, and overall environmental performance, meaning that outcomes can differ significantly across materials and methods.
• One of the main contributors to environmental impact typically arises from the most energy-intensive stages of the process. This highlights the importance of improving energy efficiency and sourcing low-impact energy. This is true as well for the recycling process as for the rest of the manufacturing and supply chain, where downstream processes include energy intensive processes such as dyeing. It is therefore essential that the recycling process produces fibres compatible with advanced, environmentally friendly manufacturing techniques.
• While recycling is a vital tool in improving sustainability across the textile value chain, it is not a stand-alone solution. The manufacturing and use stages remain significant contributors to environmental impacts. Designing for durability will increase the lifespan of garments by focusing on the physical longevity of products, together with reusability.

Read the summary report here.