PETALING JAYA, Nov 27 — For some of us, our wardrobes have little to no room left in them.

That’s mainly because of the tonnes of clothes that we have stocked up inside of it, most of which we probably no longer even wear.

One of the main reasons why those old clothes pile up in the wardrobe is because not many people know how to dispose of them correctly or feel that they are still in good condition, so it makes no sense to throw them away.

If you’re tired of looking into that packed wardrobe then you should consider recycling those clothes this weekend at the Kloth Cares fabric recycling movement in Taman Tun Dr Ismail (TTDI).

Kloth Cares is a Malaysian social entrepreneurship movement that aims to keep fabrics out of landfills, as an estimated four per cent of the total municipal solid waste generated in Malaysia comes from textile waste — making it the second-largest pollutant after oil and gas.

Fabric items like spandex and polyester can take between 20 to 200 years to decompose, while even softer materials like cotton can take up to six months. — Picture courtesy of Kloth Cares

In a single day, Malaysians can produce up to 2,000 tonnes of textile waste or equivalent to five per cent of solid waste that ends up in landfills.

So in a bid to get more people involved in their initiatives and reduce that number, Kloth Cares has teamed up with Edotco, SWCorp, the Selangor Youth Community, Life Line Clothing Sdn Bhd Malaysia, Greenpins and Shell TTDI for a one-day fabric recycling drive.

The drive will be held at Shell TTDI, Pinggir Zaaba this Saturday (November 30) from 10am to 6pm and it calls for all citizens of the Klang Valley to drop off their unwanted fabrics.

These fabrics can include unwanted garments, clothing accessories, household textiles, shoes/footwear, children’s toys, fabric remnants and even bags.

All you’d have to do is drive by and drop off the unwanted fabrics, as the Edotco volunteers will assist you in unloading the items from your vehicle.

Items that have been donated will then be sorted based on their usability as fabrics that are in good condition will be donated to charitable organisations while those that are in poor condition will be recycled into materials like industrial wiping cloth and wearable upcycled clothes.

These are the types of fabrics that Kloth Cares accepts and what happens to the donated items that it receives. — Picture courtesy of Kloth Cares

By joining in on the fabric recycling movement, you can also benefit as Kloth Cares will buy your unwanted fabrics for RM0.10 per kilogramme as an appreciation of donation (not applicable for municipal councils).

If your company or business is keen to do more to help out, you can also install a Kloth Cares chute bin or wheelie bin at your premises to encourage more people to dispose of fabrics the right way.

You would be required to pay a one-off mobilisation and administrative fee of RM300 for corporate and private institutions and RM99 for public schools and NGOs, but all pick-ups and collections from the bins will be free of charge. 

For more information about Kloth Cares, their initiatives and this weekend’s upcoming fabric recycling drive you can visit their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/klothcares/ or surf over to https://kloth.com.my/.