Did you know that what you put in the bin could be flown across the world? A new study has examined why recyclable waste moves between countries.
Recycling may happen far from the place where waste is produced. Paper, metals, plastics and glass discarded in one country can be shipped across the world and used as raw materials or recycled in another – a blind spot in the recycling world, particularly in regards to regulation.
The study, by CMCC, found that global trade in recyclable waste has remained at around 170–200 million tonnes per year since 2010. The market is also highly concentrated, with the ten largest exporting countries accounting for 67% of global exports.
The findings show that recycling and waste-management policies can influence not only how much material is recycled but also where that recycling takes place. Measures such as collection and recycling subsidies, disposal taxes and recycling targets can increase or reduce the incentive to export.
The European Union demonstrates this connection well – waste exported for recycling can count towards national packaging recycling targets – meaning that a higher reported recycling rate does not necessarily reflect more domestic recycling.
The researchers are calling for policymakers to look beyond national recycling rates, as they say effective policies must consider where waste is processed, where recycled materials are used and how incentives affect global flows.
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