Spain beats recycling record, but still lags behind Europe
Spaniards recycled more than ever last year, over 1.5 million tonnes of household waste, but it still lags somewhat behind other European countries.
In 1998, the first year Spain legislated to promote recycling household waste, 43,969 tons of material were collected. A quarter century later, in 2022, that figure was 1.6 million tonnes, according to new data from Ecoembes, a non-profit environmental organisation. This represents an increase of 3.6 percent on the 2021 figures.
Because of this the equivalent of 21.46 million cubic meters of water and 6.72 million MWh of energy were saved in Spain in 2022, in addition to preventing the emissions of 1.79 million tons of CO2 into the atmosphere.
A quarter of a century on from that first recycling legislation, when the idea was still a relatively new and an alternative thing to do, it is now thoroughly mainstream. In fact, there are now 632,146 recycling bins in Spain (usually the yellow and blue containers, depending on where you live) which works out to approximately one container every 100 metres, according to Ecoembes data.
Of these, there are 388,747 yellow containers (5,239 more than in 2021) for and 243,399 blue (3,102 more than in 2021) on the Spanish streets. In Spain, the blue bins are for paper and cardboard, the yellow bins are for plastic containers and tins, and the green bins are for glass.
The grey bins are for general waste and the brown bins (which have been introduced in some, but not all municipalities) are for organic waste.
The accessibility of this infrastructure, together with the increased frequency of collection trucks, means that the sorting process is now carried out at 97 plants spread throughout the country.
Environmentally minded Spaniards?
This rapid expansion of recycling infrastructure, and environmental consciousness more broadly, has been achieved "because caring for the environment has been gaining weight in both the political and social agenda," says Nieves Rey, spokesman for Ecoembes.
"Municipalities throughout the country have been approaching and improving the infrastructure," she adds, and society "little by little" has realised that it "has an active and very necessary role in caring for the environment."
READ ALSO: What are the recycling rules in Spain?
Recycling has become a social norm in Spain and is "a goal that we must all share," Rey says, citing the fact that all Spaniards young and old, and of all socioeconomic profiles, have incorporated recycling into their home lives and routines. "Recycling is a daily action among Spanish families, it is integrated into their day-to-day life, and that is a success."
According to La Sexta, 82 percent of Spaniards have three separate containers, bins or bags for the purpose of recycling at home.
Of the total 1,627,313 tons recycled in 2022, the majority were plastics, with 708,596 (4.7 percent more than in 2021); 666,344 tonnes were paper and cardboard waste (4.5 percent more); 243,360 tonnes were metal containers (a decrease of 1.5 percent); and 9,012 tons were wood (6.8 percent more) which was the recycled material that grew the most in the last year and speaks to how the types of containers used in society are evolving.
Lagging behind?
However, despite the upward trajectory of recycling in Spain, it still lags behind its European neighbours. In fact, the country failed to meet the objectives of the previous Waste Law in 2011 and the European directive of 2008.
Both these laws stated that before 2020, the level of reuse and recycling of domestic waste should reach at least 50 percent by weight. In 2021 in Spain, this number stood at just 35 percent, while according to the Cotec Foundation for Innovation, the EU average was 48 percent.
But it’s not all doom and gloom, as Cicloplast, which represents the plastic manufacturing and transformation industry in Spain, found that in the last ten years, the Spanish have doubled the recycling of domestic plastic containers.
According to a 2021 study by Ecoembes, Spaniards over the age of 55 are the most committed to recycling at 84.5 percent, followed by those aged between 35 and 54 at 83.9 percent and, surprisingly, the least committed are young people aged 25 to 34 at 76.4 percent and from 16 to 25 years old at 76.3 percent.
The same survey by Ecoembes found that Madrid was the region that recycles the most with 21.8 kilos of packaging per inhabitant.
This was followed by Navarra at 21.3 kg/inhabitant and the Balearic Islands at 21 kg/inhabitant. The regions that recycle the least amount were Valencia, the Canary Islands and Cantabria.
Comments
See Also
In 1998, the first year Spain legislated to promote recycling household waste, 43,969 tons of material were collected. A quarter century later, in 2022, that figure was 1.6 million tonnes, according to new data from Ecoembes, a non-profit environmental organisation. This represents an increase of 3.6 percent on the 2021 figures.
Because of this the equivalent of 21.46 million cubic meters of water and 6.72 million MWh of energy were saved in Spain in 2022, in addition to preventing the emissions of 1.79 million tons of CO2 into the atmosphere.
A quarter of a century on from that first recycling legislation, when the idea was still a relatively new and an alternative thing to do, it is now thoroughly mainstream. In fact, there are now 632,146 recycling bins in Spain (usually the yellow and blue containers, depending on where you live) which works out to approximately one container every 100 metres, according to Ecoembes data.
Of these, there are 388,747 yellow containers (5,239 more than in 2021) for and 243,399 blue (3,102 more than in 2021) on the Spanish streets. In Spain, the blue bins are for paper and cardboard, the yellow bins are for plastic containers and tins, and the green bins are for glass.
The grey bins are for general waste and the brown bins (which have been introduced in some, but not all municipalities) are for organic waste.
The accessibility of this infrastructure, together with the increased frequency of collection trucks, means that the sorting process is now carried out at 97 plants spread throughout the country.
Environmentally minded Spaniards?
This rapid expansion of recycling infrastructure, and environmental consciousness more broadly, has been achieved "because caring for the environment has been gaining weight in both the political and social agenda," says Nieves Rey, spokesman for Ecoembes.
"Municipalities throughout the country have been approaching and improving the infrastructure," she adds, and society "little by little" has realised that it "has an active and very necessary role in caring for the environment."
READ ALSO: What are the recycling rules in Spain?
Recycling has become a social norm in Spain and is "a goal that we must all share," Rey says, citing the fact that all Spaniards young and old, and of all socioeconomic profiles, have incorporated recycling into their home lives and routines. "Recycling is a daily action among Spanish families, it is integrated into their day-to-day life, and that is a success."
According to La Sexta, 82 percent of Spaniards have three separate containers, bins or bags for the purpose of recycling at home.
Of the total 1,627,313 tons recycled in 2022, the majority were plastics, with 708,596 (4.7 percent more than in 2021); 666,344 tonnes were paper and cardboard waste (4.5 percent more); 243,360 tonnes were metal containers (a decrease of 1.5 percent); and 9,012 tons were wood (6.8 percent more) which was the recycled material that grew the most in the last year and speaks to how the types of containers used in society are evolving.
Lagging behind?
However, despite the upward trajectory of recycling in Spain, it still lags behind its European neighbours. In fact, the country failed to meet the objectives of the previous Waste Law in 2011 and the European directive of 2008.
Both these laws stated that before 2020, the level of reuse and recycling of domestic waste should reach at least 50 percent by weight. In 2021 in Spain, this number stood at just 35 percent, while according to the Cotec Foundation for Innovation, the EU average was 48 percent.
But it’s not all doom and gloom, as Cicloplast, which represents the plastic manufacturing and transformation industry in Spain, found that in the last ten years, the Spanish have doubled the recycling of domestic plastic containers.
According to a 2021 study by Ecoembes, Spaniards over the age of 55 are the most committed to recycling at 84.5 percent, followed by those aged between 35 and 54 at 83.9 percent and, surprisingly, the least committed are young people aged 25 to 34 at 76.4 percent and from 16 to 25 years old at 76.3 percent.
The same survey by Ecoembes found that Madrid was the region that recycles the most with 21.8 kilos of packaging per inhabitant.
This was followed by Navarra at 21.3 kg/inhabitant and the Balearic Islands at 21 kg/inhabitant. The regions that recycle the least amount were Valencia, the Canary Islands and Cantabria.
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.