Clothes Recycling Scheme will be a game changer for textile waste in Dublin

Textile waste is a huge environmental challenge - one which we mainly export to the Global South to deal with, either through landfill or flooding local markets with low quality, cheap goods which distort local industries. The new contract for DCC promises greater re-use within Ireland and greater transparency of the export markets. This is something that the Green Party has been calling for.

The Chair of the Green Party in Ireland, Councillor Janet Horner, has welcomed the news that Enable Ireland has been awarded a contract for the provision of clothing and textile recycling services by Dublin City Council.

Reacting to the news, Cllr Horner said:

“The circular economy and less textiles going to landfill go to the heart of what the Green Party stands for- finding solutions to environmental problems that benefit us all. The awarding of this contract will be a game changer in how we handle textile waste in Dublin.

Textile waste is a huge environmental challenge - one which we mainly export to the Global South to deal with, either through landfill or flooding local markets with low quality, cheap goods which distort local industries. The new contract for DCC promises greater re-use within Ireland and greater transparency of the export markets. This is something that the Green Party has been calling for.”

While this contract has been awarded in Dublin, it is less clear how far advanced the Government’s plans are to reduce textile waste across the country. In 2025, the EU introduced a revised waste framework directive with respect to textiles which includes measures to support the separate collection of textiles and apply the “polluter pays principle” which will make the fashion industry responsible for its textile waste. Ireland must introduce this by 2028.

Cllr Horner added:

“There needs to be a sea change in how we use and reuse textiles. Textile waste accounts for 9% of our waste every year in Ireland. A lot of that is clothing, and an unsustainable culture of buying cheap clothes and discarding them. Recycling is one answer to this, and another is clothes swaps and using resale sites such as Vinted and Depop to give unwanted clothes another life.

Enable Ireland do important work and I hope that this new contract will show positive benefits for their services in Ireland, for cutting down on textile waste and for developing greater transparency and oversight on our textile waste services across the board.”

Green Party Spokesperson on Climate, and the former minister with responsibility for the circular economy, Ossian Smyth added:

“The need for this service has been apparent for some time as we see charity clothing bins overloaded in every part of the country. The old system for recycling has broken down, and it seems that very little was actually being recycled. Less than 1% of textiles are recycled and we know from the Return scheme introduced for bottles and cans  that Irish people want ways to be more sustainable.”