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It was a dirty job, in every sense of the word. The Federal Office for the Environment (BAFU) examined our Güsel in 33 communities. She does this every ten years to find out what our waste consists of, how we separate our waste and what we actually throw away.
Now it is clear that Switzerland, which likes to celebrate itself as a world recycling champion due to its special pet tradition, still has a lot of room for improvement. 21 percent of our waste consists of materials that can be recycled. That is 31 kilos of recyclable waste per person. Food scraps, fruit and vegetable waste and plastic packaging such as shampoo bottles often end up in the trash.
“We must do more to promote the circular economy,” said Bafu director Katrin Schneeberger (56) at a media conference. But city dwellers in particular are likely to make themselves unpopular with their neighbors if they place a compost heap on the balcony to properly dispose of the root peels. Therefore, the report recommends collecting organic waste in urban settlements.
Half of food waste is avoidable
Per person, 25 kilos of food such as fruit, vegetables and dairy products are thrown away every year. In addition, there are 2.2 kilos of fish and meat and 23 kilos of cooking waste. Explosive: More than half of the food thrown away could have been avoided if it had been eaten on time or stored properly.
In addition to food, there is also a lot of garden waste, toys, diapers, plastic and paper in the trash. To ensure that this number also decreases, the report recommends starting an information campaign to make plastic recycling better known. Public relations for cardboard disposal should be expanded.
The waste was examined in a total of 33 municipalities, including cities such as Basel, Geneva or St. Gallen or villages such as Jenins GR, Ringgenberg BE or Fischenthal ZH. Approximately 200 bags were examined per community.
Güsel’s investigators, for whom the federal government commissioned a company, cut open the garbage bag and sorted it into one of 32 categories. There are also more exotic ones, such as diapers, cat sand or textiles. There are 36 francs an hour for those who get their hands dirty, as the “NZZ Folio” reports.
Each category was then weighted and compared to the results of the previous analysis. The Federal Office for the Environment carries out waste research every ten years.
The waste was examined in a total of 33 municipalities, including cities such as Basel, Geneva or St. Gallen or villages such as Jenins GR, Ringgenberg BE or Fischenthal ZH. Approximately 200 bags were examined per community.
Güsel’s investigators, for whom the federal government commissioned a company, cut open the garbage bag and sorted it into one of 32 categories. There are also more exotic types, such as diapers, cat sand or textiles. There are 36 francs an hour for those who get their hands dirty, as the “NZZ Folio” reports.
Each category was then weighted and compared to the results of the previous analysis. The Federal Office for the Environment carries out waste research every ten years.
The good news: Overall, Swiss households have produced less waste than a decade ago. At the time this was still 206 kilograms per person, in 2022 it will be ‘only’ 148 kilograms. About 6 million tons of waste is generated by households and small businesses. However, a large part of our waste is collected and recycled separately; only the rest is incinerated in the waste processing plant.
Tourism also plays a decisive role in determining whether a place produces a lot or little waste. Apparently, those on holiday in Switzerland produce more waste. If the so-called overnight stays are taken into account, there are almost a third fewer Güsel.
Source:Blick
I am Liam Livingstone and I work in a news website. My main job is to write articles for the 24 Instant News. My specialty is covering politics and current affairs, which I’m passionate about. I have worked in this field for more than 5 years now and it’s been an amazing journey. With each passing day, my knowledge increases as well as my experience of the world we live in today.
