Published: Nov 13, 2022 21:09:12
Beginning November 1st, Massachusetts will not allow clothing or other fabrics to be placed in the trash. New state “No Waste” regulations require fabrics to be kept out of the trash so they can be reused or recycled.
The Franklin County Solid Waste Management District advises residents to place clean, dry clothing, fabrics, and shoes in plastic bags and bring them to the fabric return location. Do not put textiles in recycling bins.
Textiles are defined as anything from clothing (shirts, sweaters, pants) to footwear (sneakers, sandals, cleats) to accessories (bags, belts, hats) to linen (sheets, towels, fabrics, etc.) . According to the Waste Management District, these items can be torn, soiled, out of fashion, or irrelevant, but all textiles should be clean and dry. Items that can’t be reused or sold at , are sorted, packaged, and sold to recyclers who make insulation, padding, and wiping cloths. To view a full list of approved items, please visit bit.ly/3E8lG66.
Textiles contaminated with mold, bodily fluids, insects, oils, or harmful substances can end up in the trash. To keep textiles dry and clean, the Franklin County Solid Waste Management District recommends wrapping textiles in plastic bags and tying them.
There are many local drop off locations. Textile drop boxes accept the widest range of items. Smaller independent resellers may be more restrictive in what they accept.
Every Municipal Transit Station in Franklin County has a textile dropbox for residents. Some transfer stations may require an access fee or annual permit. These 19 interchange stations are Ashfield, Bernardstone, Buckland, Charmont, Collain, Conway, Deerfield, Greenfield, Heath, Leverett, Montague, New Salem, Northfield, Orange, Row, Shelburne and Warwick. , Wendell and Waitley.
Additionally, textile recycling is now accepted at local Salvation Army recycling stores. Greenfield residents drop clean, dry trucks into Hart Springs trucks parked in the Chapman/Davis Municipal Parking Lot in downtown Greenfield from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on the second and fourth Saturdays of each month. You can bring a woven bag.
The expansion of the state’s waste disposal ban is part of the 2030 Solid Waste Master Plan outlined by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and aims to increase statewide solid waste disposal capacity over the next 10 years to 5.7 million tons in 2018. We are aiming for a 30% reduction from 4 million tonnes. A list of prohibited materials can be found at bit.ly/3ttlBoC.
According to the Franklin County Solid Waste Management District, clothing and textiles make up 6% of all material entering landfills and incinerators in the United States, including 230,000 tons annually in Massachusetts alone. 95% of used clothing, footwear and other home textiles can be reused or recycled, but only 15% of reusable fibers are recovered from waste streams.
Diverting recyclable (and compostable) materials from trash saves increasingly limited landfill space and saves money. According to the Franklin County Solid Waste Management District, the remaining landfill sites in the state are expected to fill up and close completely within a few years. Most incinerators are running at full capacity, and two in western Massachusetts went bankrupt and closed earlier this year. That trash is now being sent to landfills in faraway states like Pennsylvania and Carolina. Garbage costs are rising as waste disposal is costly for municipalities and waste haulers, and the long distances traveled.
