Post-consumer textiles – From end-of-life textiles to high-quality secondary raw materials

On 7 October 2026 The Austrian Water and Waste Management Association (ÖWAV) is launching „The circular economy in industry – secondary raw materials as a resource for the future“ A new series of events. The first event is the seminar „Post-consumer textiles – from used textiles to high-quality secondary raw materials“ in Vienna.

The aim of the new series is to create a platform for dialogue between industry, public administration, and the waste and circular economy sectors. Within this framework, the aim is to work together to identify the challenges and develop solutions for moving towards a functioning circular economy across the entire value chain.

What the seminar is about:

The textile industry is responsible for around 10 % of global CO₂ emissions and is therefore increasingly becoming a focus of European circular economy policy. The EU Textiles Strategy and the planned extended producer responsibility (EPR) scheme aim to extend the lifespan of textiles and to better organise and financially underpin collection, sorting and recycling. At the same time, increasing collection volumes and a Fast fashion The resulting decline in the quality of used textiles is posing growing challenges for the industry.

ÖWAV is addressing these developments in collaboration with relevant stakeholders across the value chain as part of this new series of seminars.