How can your donations to veterans help the environment? It’s actually very simple: when you donate used clothes or household goods to wounded veterans charities, you’re keeping them out of landfills. Reusing and recycling is the environmentally friendly choice, and your old clothes and kitchen appliances may have a lot of use left in them. Used textiles are rarely recycled in the U.S. and instead go to the landfills. Used clothing donations, on the other hand, save space in already overfull landfills, and help others.
Used textiles are crowding the landfills
While Americans buy twice as many items of clothing today as they did twenty years ago, they also throw away more. After all, you can’t actually wear more than a certain number of clothes, no matter how many you own. The unused clothing either stays in closets, boxes, attics and basements, or it gets thrown out.
In fact on average Americans throw away almost 70 pounds of clothing, linens, and other textiles items every year. These go straight to the landfill, where they account for 5% of all municipal waste. Only around 15% of all textiles are recycled, even though they have a lot of life and wear left in them.
Where to donate clothes
Once you’ve decided to donate your old clothes instead of throwing them out, you need to figure out what are the best charities to donate to. Experienced givers donate clothes and other items only to groups that have tax-exempt status under section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code. You can claim the value of any charitable donations when you file your taxes.
The value of men’ overcoats and suits is generally estimated to be around $60, and even a coffee maker can be valued at $4 to $15 as a tax write-off. However if you claim write-offs for donations worth more than $250, you will have to provide a receipt with your tax returns.
How do donations to veterans help?
Charities that help veterans use your donations to raise money for their programs. These programs include health, education and family support for all veterans. Charities that accept donations to veterans also support environmental causes and programs for the blind. So your used clothing and household goods will go to support a range of good causes.
Most charities have drop boxes in prominent locations in the community. For bulky items, they may also be able to schedule a pick up from your home. When you donate used clothing and household goods, you’re also keeping them out of landfills and giving them a new lease on life.
