Throughout our childhood, adults taught us to donate and share hand-me-downs, but not many told us why. There are many reasons to donate our clothes. One of these reasons is that it helps the Earth.

Taking care of the environment should be a number one priority, so here are five ways donating clothing helps the environment.

Landfill Space Reduction

Most of the clothes we wear have a limited lifespan, which means when they’ve reached the end of their life cycle, some people throw them away. When clothes are thrown away, they get mixed into a landfill which already contains around 139.6 million tons of waste (and that’s just in the U.S!)

Landfills hold waste, rot, gasses, and more things that pollute the local environment and potentially harm citizens with hazardous materials. Air, water, and land pollution are a significant threat to our earth.

When we donate, we help reduce the number of materials that go into the landfill over time. As clothing cycles through different families and generations, it stays away from landfills.

Less Water Used

Generally, most cotton material is grown in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide such as Brazil, China, and Turkey. These areas usually require a vast amount of water in order to grow cotton properly.

Because of this, the fashion industry uses a lot of water to produce clothing, so when you donate and recycle your clothing, you’re reducing water waste!

Reduces Greenhouse Gases

Since landfills are filled with harmful gases like CO2 and methane, the amount of greenhouse gases builds up over time, which becomes dangerous for the planet.

Greenhouse gases are harmful to the environment because they trap heat within the Earth’s atmosphere, ultimately contributing to global warming.

Donating clothing keeps the landfills from growing and greenhouses gas production lower than it would be otherwise.

Lowers Carbon Footprint

Many of the items that we purchase daily are non-biodegradable, which means they cannot break down into carbon dioxide, water, methane, or organic molecules. That means they can’t return to their natural state.

It’s important to note that some items can break down—but in ways that are harmful to the environment. Certain fibers in clothing that are typically mass-produced don’t break down at all.

Donating clothing promotes a low carbon footprint which can help reduce gasses and other dangerous chemicals from circulating throughout the atmosphere.

Helps Others

When you purchase used clothing wholesale, you’re helping others save money and avoiding contributing to the fast fashion industry. Many people of the world struggle to afford clothing, so when you donate, you help families of lesser means gain resources for their homes.

Now that you understand the five ways donating clothing helps the environment, head into your closet, find some clothes you no longer need, and donate them today!