40%
of
municipal
solid  waste is
paper ?
 
 

71.8 Million Tons

in the USA alone!

 

 

Most developed nations have recycling programs which incorporate both the public and private sectors of society.
Two nations with outstanding recycling programs are Japan and Germany.  Click here to know more about Germany
 
Germany is the leading recycler in the European Union.
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Germany recycle 70% of their waste and have established fines for citizens who do not conform to recycling practices.
 

As a result of new laws passed in Germany in the last decade, domestic waste decreased by 14% from 1990-93 and packaging waste went down by 15% during the same period of time
The a new law passed in 1996, the Waste Avoidance, Recycling and Disposal Act stresses that those who manufacture, trade in or consume goods are all responsible for the waste produced.
The Act calls upon manufacturers to design their products in such a way as to reduce the amount of waste generated.
There are approx. 40 million cars on the road in Germany of which 2 million are scrapped annually.  About  3/4 of the cars are currently recycled in some way with the remaining ¼  disposed of either by incineration or landfill.
 
To aid dismantling, VW has started using different colors for different materials in at least one of its models.
 
When an old car goes for recycling:
Oil, gas & brake fluids are removed and dismantling begins. The metals (75% of the car) are recycled and the plastic is often shredded and put in a landfill.