Life cycle assessment and the emergence of product circularity: A review with context to the textile supply chain in Australia

Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) evaluates the environmental impacts of products, processes, and services throughout their life cycles, from resource extraction to disposal. Governed by International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standards 14,040 and 14,044, LCA includes a Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) to collect data on materials, energy, water use, and emissions, and a Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) to quantify environmental impacts like climate change, biodiversity loss, waste, and pollution. The growing scale of consumption and waste generation over the past two decades has made these impacts increasingly significant for the global textile industry. This is particularly so in Australia, which now surpasses the USA in terms of textile consumption per capita. A move from linear production, processing, consumption, and disposal models to longer use and circular approaches, where the material properties of the textile are retained or reused, is both logical and commendable. However, practical implementation is fraught with challenges. Large logistical and technical hurdles arise in reconfiguring supply chains to facilitate the return, (re)classification, and recycling of products. In this paper, textile sector-related frameworks and standards are reviewed for their alignment with circular economy (CE) principles and support of relevant United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Gaps in current LCA and LCIA frameworks, particularly about system boundaries and localized impact assessments, are noted along with details of how these can be adapted to support the textile sector's embrace of CE principles. Reflecting these deficiencies, a review of sustainability reports from major Australian clothing brands reveals that most companies provide quantitative future targets and annual mitigated values for Scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as well as short-term and long-term decarbonization targets. It also revealed significant gaps in sustainability and circularity initiatives reporting, such as reductions of virgin fibre use, microfibre shedding, and supporting circular business models like the resale of used products. Expanding LCA boundaries and impact assessments will be essential to properly steward and measure the environmental benefits of circular textile production systems and behaviours, and to help avoid the growing repercussions of the current market behaviour. • Textile sector-related frameworks and company reports compared with circular economy principles. • Out of 39 indicators of textile sector-related frameworks, 17 aligned with the circular economy principles. • Out of 40 indicators of textile industry standards, 16 aligned with the circular economy principles. • Around 85 % of the companies communicated on circular design, while half communicated about types of fibre (virgin vs. recycled). • Developing or redefining LCA impact indicators on reusing materials and natural regeneration is needed.