To encourage recycling, many states in the US have put 5-10 cent deposits on bottles or drink containers, and there are cities in the United States that recycle by requirement. However the country still has a very, very long way to go; only 32.5% of the total waste in the United States is recycled! This a very low number considering the large population. Perhaps the US could learn from the following countries who take recycling very seriously — so seriously that one has actually run out of garbage!
In honor of America Recycles Day, which falls on November 15th, click through for some super cool recycling ideas that have been put into practice by countries around the world. They are very inspiring to say the least!
What are the top recycling countries in the world? And, what traits do those successful recycling locations possess?
Austria sits with the highest recycling rate out of any country in the world: 63 percent of all waste is diverted from landfills. As recycling programs have evolved, Austria’s overall performance in terms of municipal solid waste recycling has been stable and at a very high level for the past decade, according to the European Environment Agency (EEA).
“Austria has a long tradition of diverting waste from landfills and has a long-established recycling system. Most of the MSW (municipal solid waste) generated in the country is either recycled or incinerated,” as published in the Municipal Waste Management Report released by the EEA.
Furthermore, according to the Austrian
constitution, the municipal waste management responsibilities are
divided between the federal and the provincial governments. In
addition to a handful of federal waste ordinances, a pivotal leg of
the waste legislation is the 2002 Act on waste management, which
established the bar for the country’s waste management practices.
Germany - The country isn’t too far behind Austria. Germany sends 62 percent of its waste through the close-loop process, keeping it from landfills.
Taiwan -keeping pace, hitting the top margin with a 60 percent success rate of recycling.
However, in an alternative approach, the recycling effort of the Zaballeen people in Cairo, Egypt, reflects even greater success than the aforementioned locations. With a metropolitan comprised of 60,000 people, you may be surprised to discover that the word Zaballeen is Arabic for “garbage people.”
As told in the 2010 documentary, Garbage Dreams, recyclers collect the urban waste and gather income from reusing, sorting, and reselling the articles they collect. The system has no established official or contemporary recycling facilities or sanitation services, yet, 80 percent of everything that is gathered is recycled.
“The Zaballeen have created the world’s most effective resource recovery system…they are actually saving our Earth. From out of the trash, they lifted themselves out of poverty and have a solution to the world’s most pressing crisis,” said Garbage Dreams Director and Producer Mai Iskander, as reported by Tom White for the International Documentary Association.
Likewise setting the recycling bar high—though, comparatively, with an established industry—
Brazil recently broke global records for its aluminum recycling.
In 2014, the country recycled 98.4
percent of consumable packaging—and has been the number one
recycler of consumer packaging in the world since 2001. In 2014, that
high percentage equated to 289,500 tons of aluminum beverage cans out
of 294,200 tons that were available in the market.
The country’s effort was linked to
the economy—which was in recession—and the high cost of energy.
Aluminum recycling requires less energy than producing new aluminum,
so the cost-effective model created a natural incentive for the
community.
Following Austria, Germany and Taiwan on Planet Aid’s list: another top recycling country is Singapore, sending 59 percent of its trash to be reused and recycled. Next up: South Korea recycles 49 percent of tossed goods. The United Kingdom hits the 39 percent mark with that percentage going into recycling. Lastly, closing out our top ten are Italy – recycling 36 percent of its trash – and France following closely behind with 35 percent.
The aforementioned locations are the
top ten recycling countries in the world for varying reasons with
their own unique approaches to the processes. As it seems, in order
to implement a high success rate for a nationwide recycling program,
the community requires one or all of these qualities: organization—be
it through legislation, industry, or entrepreneurs—incentive: a
personal motive or financial necessity, and cultural habit-building
practices.
Some Unknown Facts On Garbage Recycling
1. Sweden: Turn Garbage into Energy
Known for their passion for recycling, Sweden goes one step
further than anyone else, powering
a quarter of a million homes with burnt up waste. The city’s
garbage is used to create heat and electricity, but they’ve
recently found themselves in a bit of a pickle: they’ve run out of
garbage! Thankfully Norway has come to the rescue and is not only
paying Sweden to take their garbage, but is importing it over for
their use. Genius!
2. Italy: Charge for Waste
Rome has become quite strict regarding the whole recycling issue: if you don’t separate your recycling from your waste and you have a recycling bin within 500 meters from your front door, you can be fined up to 619 Euros ($833 US dollars)!3. Switzerland: Landfilling Ban
4. Canada: Reuse the Old
Canada, where I live, has the standard box collection system for recycling. In Ontario, Manitoba, Quebec, Saskatchewan, and British Columbia, we have blue bins and blue boxes. Blue bags are used in St. John’s, Newfoundland, and Labrador. One of the most interesting ways Canada recycles materials is how they treat their tires: tires are re-used in playgrounds and mixed with asphalt for road resurfacing.Vancouver has just launched a pilot program to recycle cigarette butts … yes, you read that correctly! These recycling bins will be posted around the city and once collected, they will be recycled into different products including plastic pallets. This is a huge deal, as cigarettes are one of the most littered items in the world.
5. Germany: Render Fat For Products
Germany is very diligent with their bin system. In fact, they even have a separate recycling bin for dead animals. How does one recycle an animal? Dead dogs, deer, or other creatures that are found on the side of the road or die from other causes are taken to nearby facilities and are then rendered down for their fat. The fat is then used for lip balms and other products.The country is yet another that charges for garbage disposal. The cost of emptying a 60-liter bin will run you at $8.87 USD. That definitely adds up, and the larger your bin, the higher the cost, but recycling is always free.
6. Japan: Appliance Disposal Fees
Japan has had their own Home Appliance Law that’s been in effect for over 10 years now. It places the responsibility of recycling on everyone from the consumers to the manufacturers. If you need to get rid of a large appliance, you are required to pay a recycling fee and purchase a ticket. The fees depend on the appliance, brand, and size of the unit. The cost of recycling a small television, for example, would run you about $19.30 USD, while a refrigerator is a higher fee at $32.16.Facilities such as the Panasonic Eco Technology Centre then shred the appliances into small bits for recycling. You can even watch the process if you choose to!
7. Belgium: Innovative Technologies
Belgium has a recycling rate of 91% when it comes to scrap cars, thanks to their state-of-the-art post shredder technologies and their goal is to hit the 95% mark by 2015! Once a car is recycled, shredder waste is what remains and that in itself is a difficult material to recycle as it’s a mix of all kinds of different materials. Post shredder technology makes it possible to recover useful raw materials from the shredder waste by using mechanical separation techniques.Sources- General Kinematics
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