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Food, packaging, electronic waste, plastic: mankind is trashing itself. With focus on “life in throwaway mode” We follow routes of waste, show what he does with humans and animals and how to avoid m better.
There are few people who can look forward to sight of rubbish like Michael Scriba. When he talks about mountains of pet bottles and about bales of toy leftovers, which are delivered to him in “high-quality, pre-sorted and pure varieties”, n his calm and prudent voice, with enthusiasm, smoos a few notes in height. Scriba finally has enough to shred again. More than enough even. In his recycling company MTM Plastics, machines have been running for a few months, and boss says: “We now have enough plastic waste as input. And this also in better quality. I’m very happy with that. “
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The success story of Scriba and his colleagues began almost exactly six months ago in China. The People’s Republic imposed a ban on import of plastic waste, which it n imported abundantly. One could also say that China has been country that liberated Europe from plastic waste, in particular. 56 percent of plastic waste was shipping world to China, and EU states were even going to get rid of 87 percent of ir plastic debris re. The Federal Republic also delivered approximately 760,000 tonnes of plastic waste annually to China. That’s end now.
At beginning of year many experts from packaging and waste management industry and environmentalists warned that China’s import stoppage will now lead us to great Müllstau. Perhaps even to temporary waste of Western world. Finally, every year, 400 million tonnes of plastic are produced worldwide – two hundredfold of what was still 1950 from factories. Much of it ends up as food packaging or industrial plastic waste sooner or later in Trash. And now, fear is that mountains would remain of plastic waste, y would have to be deposited or burned more often than already. Or at least shipped somewhere else. But history has taken a completely different turn.
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But why did China ever lock its limits on plastic waste? Some say Chinese had had enough of being considered a dump in world. But that’s not way it is. Instead, Chinese buyers paid far higher prices for plastic waste than or customers. 20 euros more per tonne, according to disposal Association BDE. For years, China made a good deal with waste: it built many recycling factories, weighed m well with rubbish from west, and sold acquired material lucratively.
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Because of fact that heavily contaminated plastic residues also found ir way to Far East, unusable debris and dirt residues were piled up re. They make up about 40 percent of many plastic wastes. China is not keen on se residues. That is why Beijing leadership has imposed a ban on imports and has now established itself with Chinese money factories in Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam. They are now taking over dirty work and piling up dirt mountains in China’s place. The People’s Republic, on or hand, only reproduces finished granules as goods. This business pays off for recycling companies re.
What does this mean for German companies? The plastic waste from Europe is now being proposed. Even from England, many tons of plastic waste, which had never left British island in direction of continent, have recently arrived. And German waste management company rejoice, as Michael Scriba said: “We are very pleased about this,” he says, “We have been calling for years for this export spree to stop in Asia.”
Previously, Kunststoffrecyclern was sometimes not offered any material: “In meantime, Chinese bought all waste that had to be on market,” says Scriba. Or it was only poor quality to have high prices. With lavish surcharges, China kept prices high. Today, Scribas companies can choose best leftovers.
