"Per household, it was 50 packages per week," said Greenpeace spokesperson Stefan Stadler - thus around 10.7 billion plastic packages annually in households across Austria. The NGO is calling for a ban on single-use packaging.

Greenpeace Check: Only 17 Percent of Plastic Packaging is Recycled

About one million tons of plastic waste is generated annually in Austria, a third of which, according to Greenpeace, is plastic packaging. The problem is not only the need for petroleum to produce the plastics and that they cause more greenhouse gases in Austria than air traffic, or the potentially dangerous microplastics, explained Marc Dengler, a plastic expert at Greenpeace during a press conference in Vienna. Because only about 17 percent of the packaging is recycled, while over 80 percent is incinerated ("thermal recycling"), as the analysis of the counted plastic waste revealed. The recycling rate is a little higher for some packaging, especially if it is PET bottles or styrofoam.

Greenpeace Calls for the Elimination of Unnecessary Plastic Packaging

However, Greenpeace is not calling for a higher recycling rate, but a ban on avoidable single-use packaging - such as for fruits and vegetables or individually wrapped sweets - and increasing return rates. Karin Huber-Heim, an expert in circular economy and transformative business models at the FH of BFI Vienna, supports this demand: "A solution would be a comprehensive circular economy," instead, we think too quickly about energy-intensive recycling. "Return strategies would be important," said the expert. From the industry, there is a need for a reduction of (difficult to recycle) mixed materials and the use of high-quality plastics, "unnecessary packaging should be eliminated, whether made of plastic or other materials."

In the types of packaging determined during the "Plastic Check", bag packaging of sweets, snacks or pasta was just in first place with 18 percent, followed by hard plastic containers and cups (16 percent) and foils (cling film, peel-off foils, protective foils for fruit, vegetables, pastries, 16 percent). According to the origin, the food sector was clearly leading with two-thirds of the counted plastic waste. A ban on such single-use packaging would have another advantage, according to Dengler, as it could also reduce food waste if, for example, you no longer have to buy three peppers at once. Stadler added that plastic packaging - such as for cucumbers - is not necessarily the most hygienic solution: the cucumber may look fresh for longer, but the plastic does little to counteract the invisible germ formation during longer storage.

Greenpeace Check: Increase Return Rate for Beverage Containers, Reduce Plastic Waste Export

The plastic check has shown how many avoidable single-use packages are in circulation - and it is not enough to ban single-use plastic and then bring other materials into use, Dengler concluded. The demand to politicians is for a return rate for beverage containers, which should go back towards 80 percent - a level that could be reached once in the 1990s. "90 percent already pay attention to whether the product is also available as a returnable," Stadler named a result of the "Plastic Check". With the materials, recyclability should be the top priority - and the export of plastic waste from Austria should also be reduced. Still, 325,000 tons of plastic waste are transported abroad, with 25 trucks carrying around 1,000 tons of plastic waste across the border every working day.

The global plastic crisis or flood must also be tackled. In this context, Greenpeace reminded of the current UN negotiations in Busan (South Korea) for an agreement against plastic pollution. Strong and binding measures were demanded here - including a 75 percent reduction in plastic production by 2040, return rates and also a global ban on unnecessary single-use plastic.

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article .