ECOS actively participates in the development of policy and standards applying to textiles. Our goal is to limit negative impacts of textile products on the environment, ensuring that standards and legislation contribute to a circular textile economy, including more durable, reusable, and repairable design of (non-toxic) textile products as well as cleaner production. We strive to make sure that textiles on the EU market are circular, durable and produced in a sustainable way, free of hazardous chemicals.
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The European Commission has today, 30 March 2022, set out plans to bring more sustainability to the textile industry - a sector which remains largely under-regulated. But civil society groups are alarmed that the much-anticipated text misses out key human rights aspects from its focus. With environmental and social sustainability being two sides of the same coin, it is a huge missed opportunity that a chapter of the EU Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles seems to have been lost.
The environmental impacts of the textile sector are growing by the minute. Unless we slow down, our planet will become the ultimate fashion victim. On 30 March, the European Union is releasing a dedicated EU Strategy on Textiles, meant to allow a shift to a climate-neutral circular economy. This will require an integrated, multi-faceted approach: while policymakers make sustainable products the norm in the EU, the industry will need to shift its business models to operate within planetary boundaries.
Face masks and Personal Protective Equipment play a critical role in the battle against COVID-19 – and have become part of our daily essentials. However, disposable masks and other types of PPE are feeding a growing mountain of waste.
The proposal for a targeted revision of the Waste Framework Directive addresses some key waste streams in need of urgent attention. The proposed Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for textiles is a first step towards holding producers accountable for the products they place on the market. In our joint letter we point out some grave shortcomings of the proposal and call on policymakers to fully implement the 'polluter pays principle' to stem the tide of textile waste in the EU.
Download the pdfECOS is co-funded by the European Commission and EFTA Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or EISMEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
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