Sweden Now Recycles 99 Percent of Its Trash
The next time you feel smug about remembering to recycle your old bottles and newspapers, think again. Sure you're doing your part for the environment, but overall America isn't particularly adept at being environmentally responsible. In fact, compared to other countries, our recycling efforts are pretty pathetic. So if you ever feel the urge to brag about how environmentally conscious you are, just remember that the country of Sweden is putting America's recycling efforts to shame.
Sweden leads the world in effective recycling systems. The Scandinavian country has achieved a near zero waste amount and recycles about 99 percent of all its garbage. The country has always been on top of this environmentally significant move; in 2012, Sweden was already recycling 96 percent of the garbage its population produced. Managing to achieve a near zero waste amount just three years later is nothing short of astonishing.
Sweden can attribute its remarkable statistics to its rigorous recycling program. The government emphasizes reuse of refuse, recycling, and other alternatives to simply tossing aside your trash. The landfill is the last resort, which is why only one percent of all trash in Sweden ends up there. Additionally, Sweden has a far more complex trash separation program. This allows nearly everything that goes into the garbage to come back in some recycled form; the American system is far more relaxed, meaning mismanaged trash often ends up in overflowing landfills.
What about the stuff that simply can't be reuse or recycle? A lot of the garbage finds a second life as energy; the Waste to Energy Program burns garbage that would otherwise rot in dumps. This garbage is then converted into heat or electricity for the very homes that provided the garbage.
The leftovers are almost entirely repurposed: the ashes are sifted through to find useful porcelain, gravel, tile, and metals. Even the smoke created from the Waste to Energy Program is carefully controlled: even though 99.9 percent of it is non-toxic carbon monoxide and water, it's still filtered. Even the small amount of sludge produced from this is reused, sent down to refill abandoned mines.
This method of recycling is not without its critics, who worry about the environmental impact of such a practice. Overall, burning refuse and reusing it is still far cleaner than drilling for oil or using natural gases that power plants throughout the globe. And Sweden has had no ill effects from this practice; in fact, quite the opposite.
You could safely say that Sweden is the leading power in recycling. In fact, the country is so successful at repurposing waste that it's taking on the trash of others. The country is working on plans to import over 800,000 tons of garbage from countries throughout Europe. This isn't an entirely altruistic move; Sweden will use the energy from the trash to provide heat and electricity to its citizens, simultaneously saving money and helping the environment.
It's safe to assume that Sweden is the uncontested leader when it comes to recycling. America, meanwhile, only recycles about 34 percent of all its trash. Maybe it's time to rethink our antiquated trash system, and recycle it into something a little more environmentally sound.
[Pic via Flickr - Samantha Marx]
