A spokesperson for the New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY) said in a 2025 interview that textiles have become the "next frontier" in waste sorting and reuse. Although New York residents' demand for old clothing recycling is strong—in a PromoLeaf survey of 151 cities, New York ranked first with 10,440 related searches per month, nearly twice that of second-place Los Angeles—its ranking in actual recycling is only 63rd.

According to DSNY's 2023 waste characterization study, the average New York City household discards 92 pounds of textile waste per year, a significant drop from about 123 pounds in 2017. However, once this waste enters landfills, it releases greenhouse gases such as methane and may cause PFAS (forever chemicals) and microplastics to leach into soil and groundwater. The U.S. Government Accountability Office, citing a 2024 federal report, noted that 60% of textiles contain microplastics.

To address this issue, DSNY has implemented several measures: although the Re-Fashion NYC program launched in 2011 has ended, it has been replaced by recycling events in 59 community boards citywide, permanent and seasonal drop-off sites, and textile recycling pilot projects for office buildings, schools, and apartment buildings with ten or more units. Under regulations, businesses whose textile waste accounts for more than 10% of total monthly waste are obligated to sort and recycle it.

Despite these efforts, data for fiscal year 2025 show that only about 4.3% (about 8,000 tons) of the city's textile waste was recycled or reused, with more than 178,000 tons ultimately entering the waste stream. In its 2026 draft solid waste management plan, DSNY committed to further studying textile recycling, adding drop-off sites, and possibly launching appointment-based curbside collection for low-rise buildings with fewer than ten units.

To this end, New York City Council Member Crystal Hudson introduced Bill 256, requiring DSNY to launch a feasibility study on mandatory sorting and collection of residential textile waste. The New York League of Conservation Voters supports the bill and calls for expanding existing recycling channels to lay the foundation for future citywide curbside recycling.

For the industry, if New York City implements mandatory sorting and curbside collection, it will greatly increase the city's textile waste recycling rate. Especially against the backdrop of an active global secondhand clothing market and increasingly strict sustainability regulations, this local legislative pilot could provide a reference model for other U.S. cities.

Source: NYC’s Fashion Faux Pas: Textiles in Landfills - New York League of Conservation Voters · Originally published 2026-08-24