Circular economy approaches for the management of textile waste in Tashkent: Viability and policy recommendations

Textile waste management has turned out to be one of the major environmental and economic challenges that face metropolitan areas. This paper aimed to investigate how feasible it would be to implement circular economy strategies for the management of textile waste in Tashkent City, Uzbekistan. The research method used was a mixed (qualitative-quantitative) method based on data collection through a questionnaire from ۳۰۰ households, semi-structured interviews with ۳۵ key stakeholders (managers, private sector activists, and experts), and field observations. Quantitative findings demonstrated that the existing system is completely linear. It was observed that ۵۵% of households in the city dispose of their textile waste directly into public trash bins. However, statistical results highlight that a high willingness of the community (۷۴%) exists to contribute in separated collection systems if infrastructure will be available. On the other hand, experts identified a lack of separation and collection infrastructure, the weakness of the market for recycled material, and unsupportive policies as main barriers. Material composition has shown that approximately ۶۰% of the stream is made up of cotton, which presents a good opportunity to begin mechanical recycling. The study concluded that transitioning toward a full circle economy in Tashkent seems feasible despite such structural barriers due to social and technical potential. This calls for the implementation of pilot projects, designing economic-political incentives, and integration of existing informal networks.

کلیدواژه ها:

Circular economy ، Textile waste ، Tashkent ، feasibility study ، Waste management