Are PCK containers disappearing from urban spaces?

Due to regulations introducing mandatory textile sorting (which came into effect at the beginning of this year) and the fact that they can no longer be disposed of in mixed waste containers, many local governments have faced the challenge of dealing with this situation. The most common recommendation is to take used clothing to a local recycling center (PSZOK), but residents often lack the courage to take a bag of unwanted clothes there. One common option is to donate them to the Polish Red Cross (PCK) or Wtórpol containers, such as those located in Przeworsk. Recently, however, the local government announced that the Polish Red Cross has ended its partnership with an external company (in this case, Wtórpol) responsible for collecting textiles from Przeworsk. Consequently, the collection of clothing, textiles, and footwear in the special containers is now permanently discontinued, and the containers themselves are being gradually removed from the city. A request was also made to refrain from placing any more bags of clothing in the containers, as they will no longer be emptied. Residents quickly began asking what to do with the used clothes they had accumulated at home and no longer used.

However, it turns out that not all used clothing containers will be removed from the city. Sławomir Stefański, director of the Podkarpacie district branch of the Polish Red Cross in Rzeszów, explains the situation.

"In the Podkarpacie region, including Przeworsk, there were containers from two sources – from Wrórpol, which is actually importing several thousand containers from Poland due to current financial problems, and from the Polish Red Cross. The disappearing ones belong to Wtórpol (this company recently ended its partnership with the Polish Red Cross; it was responsible for the transport, sorting, and sale of textiles, the income from which supported the Polish Red Cross's aid efforts – note). As for us, to meet public expectations, last week we offered to rent or lend our containers to the Przeworsk local government for a symbolic price so that they could continue to manage the textile industry in the same locations using their own resources. We would also provide additional containers to the Polish Red Cross Conservation Office (PSZOK). We have not yet received a response. However, three Polish Red Cross containers are still located near our organization's headquarters, and there you can still...