Selective waste collection in Portugal remains below the objectives set for 2025, with plastic being the least recycled, according to data from the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA).
In the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) report on recycling for 2022, undifferentiated collection (common waste) represents 77% of the waste collected, while selective collection (recycling) represents only 21%.
The APA warns that, despite some improvements in selective collection, which has increased in the last decade, the rate of undifferentiated collection “remains high” and that “it is crucial to reverse” the situation.
According to data from the report, the glass was the most recycled waste in 2022, representing around 55% of the collectionwhile the percentage of recycled plastic it’s just 22% and that of paper and card 47%.
The agency states that of the urban waste produced in Portugal, the majority (around 57%) is landfilled and only 16% is sent for recycling.
The collection of unsorted waste represents around 80% of that collected in 2022, which is an indicator “that over the years has not shown signs of improvement”, despite the investments made for this purpose.
The APA also says that Waste collected in an undifferentiated manner has an “enormous potential” that is little exploited.as its destination is landfill or energy recovery.
Quoted in a statement on the occasion of International Recycling Day, which is celebrated this Friday, the executive director of the Sociedade Ponto Verde, Ana Trigo Morais, maintains that Portugal “has done a remarkable job when it comes to packaging recycling” and The system “has been evolving,” but he believes that “it is necessary to accelerate” because the country “has new goals to meet.”
“Motivating to generate even more action is essential. It is citizens who deposit their containers at recycling points and, therefore, in addition to having a quality and comfortable service, it is necessary to invest in proximity and differentiating campaigns, teaching the positive impact that this gesture has on the planet. ”, he argues.
In accordance with the objectives defined by the European Union, Member States will have to recycle around 65% of all packaging placed on the market by the end of 2025..
Source: Observadora
