Recycling rates in Europe

[Simon]

Ever wondered which European country is the best at recycling? The graph below shows the recycling rates in each country in the European Union, and the result might surprise some.

 

 

Austria, Germany and Belgium has the higest recycling rates in EU, this means they have recycled the largest proportion of municipal waste in Europe. Sweden - my own country - which is known for its good recycling efforts is far behind. 

 

Overall 39 percent of municipal waste is recycled in Europe, a significant improvement on 23 percent in 2001 and 35 percent in 2010. By looking at the graph, it's hard to see how the majority of the countries will be able to meet EU-mandated targets to recycle 50 percent of household and similar waste by 2020. Each person in the EU-28 generates 92 kg of municipal waste every year - with the majority of the waste going into landfills.

 

How well is your country performing?

[MindyT]

Do you know how the United States compares to Europe? Do we have the same recycling programs? What ideas can we share with each other?