Polish people produce relatively little waste, but they still cannot segregate them
Polish people in comparison with other European countries produce very little waste. According to the data of the Central Statistical Office, 142 million tons of waste is produced annually in Poland, most of which are waste from mining, energy and industry. The remaining 7% are municipal waste (around 10 million tonnes of waste). Every year, every resident produces about 268 kg, and the EU average is as much as 481 kg per capita. For comparison, the Danes, well-known for their care for nature, per year produce 747 kg of waste, and Germany – 617 kg. The amount of waste produced is systematically increasing.
Unfortunately, waste segregation in Poland still does not work as it should, which in turn means that a large part of waste goes to landfills. The law in force since 2013 requires local governments to implement separate waste collection systems. However, until today, about 10% of municipalities have not developed such systems. In many municipalities, this system is inefficient and tons of secondary raw materials are disposal in landfills, instead of returning to the using as a result of recycling.
According to Central Statistical Office data, only around 21% of municipal waste was recycled in Poland in 2014. In the “old EU” countries, the standard is even 60%. The best results are achieved by Austrians, Germans, and the residents of the Benelux, Scandinavia and Czechs are just behind them.
May 11, 2018
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