Dublin, Ireland, is getting a new clothing waste management company after the old one hit its capacity, according to The Journal.

What's happening?

Dublin operates a network of clothing drop-off points around the city. The service provider that managed these drop-offs, Textile Recycling Limited, suspended its service in January, citing maximum capacity at its storage facilities.  

Traditionally, clothing recycling companies would pay the source for textiles by weight received, but a report stated that "this model has become increasingly unsustainable in recent years," per The Journal. An overabundance of supply is reversing the relationship across the industry, so cities like Dublin will need to pay service providers to pick up and responsibly process textiles. 

Why is clothing waste important?

While the sheer volume of clothing produced by the fast-fashion industry is the primary issue, weaving plastics into clothes has also proved to be a complication for recycling. 

"It is a complex area," said Derek Kelly, the director of service at Dublin City Council, per The Journal. "The nature of the world at the moment, there's a lot of fast fashion, and the textile quality isn't up to recycling even, and that's a big issue in the international markets at the moment for textiles."

When left to landfill, clothing releases methane, which traps heat in the atmosphere and exacerbates destructive weather patterns such as flooding and drought. Synthetic fabrics are also prone to shedding microplastics, which gradually filter into oceans and into the fish we eat. Upstream, clothing production has its own host of ecological costs.

What's being done about clothing waste?

Dublin is now looking at bids to take on the work of managing its clothing waste. The contract will be valued at €1 million ($1.17 million) over four years.

Breaking up with fast fashion isn't just possible — it can even be profitable. Many companies operate by finding a second life for used clothes, including Trashie, ThredUp, and GotSneakers. On the shopping side, thrifting is a great way to find beautiful clothes while also saving a few bucks.

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