Although I havent been able to find any recent articles confirming that this program actually was launched—this initiative if replicated across the country could help remove an enormous waste stream from our landfills. 

According to Calrecycle despite the recession textile waste in California has grown by more than 50% in the last 10 years.

California’s Textile Waste Grew 53% From 1999 to 2008 Despite Recession

by Jasmin Malik Chua, 07/11/11

Recession, what recession? California’s textile waste soared from 330,000 tons in 1999 to 506,000 tons—a whopping 53 percent increase—despite the throes of an economic meltdown according to Calrecycle, the state’s department of recycling and recovery. Although the Golden State’s population grew by only 10 percent over the same period, the proportion of textiles in the residential waste stream leaped from 2.4 to 4.2 percent, a 75 percent hike.

This is a perfect example of why it is so important to support quality apparel manufacturers who manufacture in the US, support fair wages, eco-friendly practices, and make quality clothing that will wear gracefully.  Fast disposable fashion, made cheaply, under questionable conditions has a larger environmental and social impact (even if it is recycled). Even with recycling programs hopefully expanding across the country, reducing our textile waste begins with making better decisions about the companies we buy from and what we buy (and then making the decision to recycle at the end of a garment’s life).