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Textiles and Carpet are Resources

46,659 tons were disposed of at the landfill in 2006

KC Waste Stream What's in your garbage? Seventy-five percent of materials thrown away are resources – not waste.

What is it?

Textiles are fabrics woven or knitted of natural or man-made materials. Carpets are heavy floor coverings woven of wool or synthetic fibers.

Why recycle textiles and carpet?

Textiles and carpets in the landfill are a wasted resource because the fibers can be re-manufactured into new products such as new carpeting or insulation. Textiles in good condition can be reused or turned into rags, which in turned can be recycled into paper. Carpet is currently more difficult to recycle then textiles, but as part of the Carpet America Recovery Effort (external link), government agencies and the carpet industry have set the goal to divert 40 percent of waste carpet from landfills by 2012.

What can you do?

• Northwest Center (external link), a local non-profit agency, accepts textiles for reuse or recycling at the following King County Transfer Stations: Cedar Falls, Enumclaw, Houghton, Renton and Vashon.
• To find additional companies and organizations that accept textiles for recycling, visit the What do I do with…? Web site.

See What Happens to Your Recyclables in this 10 minute video (Please choose your preferred video format) :

• Windows Media variable speed format (Windows Media Player required - free download available)
• Real Media variable speed format (RealPlayer required - free download available)

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