Just two of the pieces of history I saved from my Dad’s place on the old Chatham Air Force Base. After leaving the RCAF, Miramichi Pete drove cab for one short stint in 1957, before being recalled into the RCAF for three more years.

My Dad died in 2014, and his philosophy of viewing nothing as “garbage” meant that he hadn’t thrown out a whole lot over the years. Cleaning the house was an eviscerating experience… kind of like travelling through a museum curated exclusively to break your heart.

Those that knew Miramichi Pete would recognize his “Arctic Survival” coat: a military green, somewhat oversized parka which was issued to him during RCAF arctic survival training in 1952. He was never without that coat in in the colder months, and, true to form, he wore it out to his final St. Paddy’s dinner.

The coat survived 62 years of hard wear and my Dad had sewn countless patches - often using military-issue waxed thread - onto the exterior shell.

And yet it was no surprise find a 2nd arctic survival coat - clean, neat, and entirely unworn in 62 years - hanging in his closet. Officers in 1952 would likely have been issued two coats, and Dad saw fit to leave the other issue for a day when he would need it. That find was one of many that brought smiles during a tough time.

In 2020, most of us feel we “need” a new coat more than once every 62 winters. In 2020, it might also be “goddamn difficult” (in Miramichi Pete’s words) to find a coat that would last 62 years.

I got to thinking about all of this after attending a Zero Waste Café here in Toronto (hosted by Collective Impact Journey and Wisebird Consulting, founder of the reusable takeaway program Wisebox TO). The theme of the evening focused on ‘eco-anxiety’ and finding ways to deal with the despair or angst many people feel over the current state of the environment. I left the event ruminating on one conversation in particular from the event, about the challenging nature of textile waste and learning to repair clothing in response.

Beyond my Dad’s propensity for old clothes, my previous career had taught me that in Toronto, an average household throws out 17kg of textiles annually, which amounts to well over 7,000 tonnes of used clothing in Toronto’s garbage bins every year. It had also taught me that textiles are damn near impossible to recycle effectively, because they are often made of interwoven fibres of different materials (think: a cotton-polyester blended t-shirt). It had also taught me that solutions are few and far between.

The Ontario Textile Diversion Collaborative put it more eloquently than I could here:

We simply buy too much clothing – in fact 60% more today than we did 20 years ago, and we keep our clothes for half as long. This overconsumption, fueled by fast fashion, has led to a significant increase in the number of textiles showing up in our landfills. The most important thing we can do is BUY LESS and reduce the amount of clothing we consume.

Adam just can’t help himself. He’s wearing his new “green” shirt from a local thrift store and insisted on being part of this blog post.

So. What can you do? It’s easy. Start with some small(ish), simple(ish) steps to help reduce textile waste in your home:

Buy used. Thrift stores rule. The ones in the Miramichi got some pretty dope stuff from my Dad’s closets in 2014, and buying used clothing gives a home to something that would otherwise live in a landfill.
- Buying used doesn’t need to be “uncool” – local businesses like Phoenix Preworn will curate a top-notch, hip-looking wardrobe for your young one, which you can return once your child has aged out of it!
- Children’s boutiques have been rocking used clothes for a long time – check out Little White Sneakers, as an example.
- Thrift and used stores are also good for hours of entertainment and very little money is exchanged at the end. Every town has great ones, including right here in Gravenhurst.
Whenever you can, and whenever it is practicable, buy quality, locally-made clothing. Tilley is one brand that still makes much of their clothing in Ontario, but there are plenty of others! Let us know your faves.
Try to purchase clothing made of natural fibres, like unbleached cotton or bamboo. No, clothing made from these fibres are not without their own environmental concerns. But washing them does not produce small plastic microparticles, so they’re a step in the right direction.
Participate in or organize a clothing swap to help satisfy the desire for something new in your closets.

FINAL POINT: If you’re still here, you’re probably into sustainable fashion. Check out this incredibly comprehensive Sustainable Fashion Toolkit, from Fashion Takes Action (Canada’s only non-profit working towards sustainability in the fashion industry).

Textile Waste and How to Reduce It (and How Miramichi Pete Was Doing It Years Before His Time)