Dual system takes burden off environment and climate
The dual system is already making a strong contribution to climate and environmental protection, but it could do even more with the right general conditions. This is the outcome of a comprehensive study of the ecological achievements and potential of the dual system, presented by the "Öko-Institut" and "Der Grüne Punkt" in Berlin.
The dual system relieves the burden on the atmosphere every year by 3.1 million tonnes of CO2 equivalents. Of that, alone 1.9 million tonnes can be attributed to the recycling of lightweight packaging (yellow bin, yellow bag). "Today, the recycling of lightweight packaging has the best climate footprint of all types of municipal waste," says Günter Dehoust, head of the study at the Öko-Institut. "Its contribution to climate protection is 19 times higher per tonne than the disposal of residual waste“. This lightweight packaging also includes aluminium and composite packaging.
The ecological contribution could be increased considerably, however. In various scenarios the Öko-Institut calculated the effects of the use of improved sorting technology, easier sorting in households, and the extension of the dual system to include other waste materials – so-called "non-packaging made of the same materials".
The study "Recycling is the future – ecological achievements and potential of the dual system" by the Öko-Institut on behalf of Der Grüne Punkt summarises progress made in the dual system from 1990 to 2014.