Disposing of the 'Unwearables'?

In the UK, massive quantities of textiles are annually sent to landfill or to be incinerated. Environmentally, this obviously makes no sense. There've been attempts to reduce this emissions-generating wastage. One is the 'Shwopping' tie-up between Marks and Spencer (M&S) and the charity, Oxfam. It rewards M&S customers, donating 'wearable' clothing to the supermarket. 'Wearable' clothing is defined as 'clean, dry, in good condition and ready to be worn'. Such items are then sold, as 'preloved' garments, in Oxfam's stores and on its website. It's been estimated, however, that UK folk alone, have more than 1.6bn items of unworn clothing in their wardrobes. The M&S/Oxfam tie-up will now offer UK folk the opportunity to dispose of all their unwanted clothing in a single operation. People will be able to request pre-paid post bags from the Oxfam website. They will be then asked to place 'wearable' and 'unwearable' items in separate sacks, within the bag. 'Unwearables' are items 'damaged in some way, for instance torn, stained, faded or stretched'. It's thought that this opportunity will increase the likelihood of folk having a wardrobe 'clear-out' (https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/apr/22/m-and-s-and-oxfam-trial-postal-donation-bags-for-unwearable-clothes). The only downside to the scheme, is that users do not appear clear about what's 'wearable' and what's 'unwearable'. For example, tearing and fading can be distinctly fashionable for some folk. This, however, should be sortable. 'Wearable' items will continue to be sold by Oxfam. Clearly currently 'unwearable' garments, will be recycled by a UK Fashion and Textile Project. The project aims to turn most the material into new garments. The scheme will also deal with unwanted bedding and towels. This is what they call 'a circular economy'.