Since this year there has been a new law in Europe: Member states have to collect organic waste separately. Has that already worked in Germany?
Munich – 760,000 tons of CO₂ can be saved with consistent organic waste collection. For this reason, the member states in Europe have had the law since January 1st that waste must be collected separately. German Environmental Aid is therefore demanding one from Federal Environment Minister Steffi Lemke Comprehensive organic waste bin requirement for all municipalities in Germany. The offer of such a bin should be guaranteed free of charge to all households. In addition, the waste container should be financed through the residual waste fees.
Compulsory organic waste bins are needed: the new EU law is lagging behind in Germany
The DUH calls for a bio-bin requirement. The reason: The transition period, after which all EU member states must have implemented separate organic waste collection, expired on January 1, 2024. But in Germany, separate waste collection can still be expanded: 5.4 million citizens have only very limited or no possibility of collecting organic waste separately.
This includes at least twelve districts and independent cities in which there is still no way to separate kitchen and garden waste from other waste. According to the press release, the following towns are included:
- Altötting
- Bremerhaven
- Emmendingen
- North Saxony
- Ortenaukreis
- Prignitz
- Saale-Holzland district
- Saale-Orla district
- Saalfeld-Rudolstadt
- Sonneberg
- Teltow-Fläming
- Uckermark
In other districts and independent cities, consumers are asked to take their waste to collection points in public spaces or recycling centers. Places with an impractical delivery system:
- Amberg-Sulzbach
- Bernkastel-Wittlich
- Biberach
- Birch field
- Coburg (district) and Coburg (city)
- Eichsfeld
- Eifel district Bitburg-Prüm
- Emden
- County of Bentheim
- Hagen
- resin
- Kaufbeuren
- Kronach
- Landshut (city)
- Empty
- Lichtenfels
- Lüchow-Dannenberg
- Mühldorf am Inn
- Regensburg (city) and Regensburg (district)
- Rosenheim (city) and Rosenheim (district)
- Rotenburg (Wümme)
- Schwandorf
- Schweinfurt (city)
- Trier and Trier-Saarburg
- Western Pomerania-Greifswald
- Weimar Land
Save climate-damaging CO₂ emissions: “Organic waste belongs in the organic waste bin”
The number is frightening, because more than five million tons of organic waste end up in residual waste every year. If this were collected separately, as the EU recently stipulates, up to 680 million cubic meters of biogas could be produced every year and up to 760,000 tons of climate-damaging CO₂ emissions could be saved.
“According to EU law, separate organic waste collection must be implemented. There are no more excuses. Organic waste belongs in the organic waste bin,” says Barbara Metz, Federal Managing Director of the DUH. She further explains the incomprehensibility of the actions of some municipalities: “It is all the more incomprehensible that some districts and independent cities refuse separate collection or make it so impractical that no one uses it.” Reason enough for the DUH to call on Environment Minister Lemke to take action. (Denise Dörries)
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