From 1 January 2023, all plastic packaging such as yoghurt pots, plastic bags or tubes throughout Austria will be collected in the yellow bin or yellow bag together with plastic bottles and drink cartons.
“For the first time there are uniform collection rules throughout Austria – this makes collection easier and more efficient,” says Leonore Gewessler (Greens). Moreover, this leads to more collection volumes and more recycling material can be reused. This saves valuable raw materials, according to the minister.
Mandatory from 2025
“This way we can recycle more in the future and protect our environment and our climate.” As a result, the collection of plastic packaging is expected to increase by 20 percent. In 2025, the joint collection of plastic and metal packaging will be mandatory throughout Austria. Some federal states, such as Vienna, already prefer this and already collect metals in the yellow bin.
This measure also makes an important contribution to meeting the recycling quotas applicable throughout Europe. In 2025, 50 percent of packaging must be recycled and in 2030 55 percent. The recycling rate is currently 25 percent. There are also ambitious collection quotas for plastic beverage bottles: 77 percent in 2025, 90 percent in 2029.
Until now, plastic has been collected in different ways
Until now, plastic packaging waste has been collected in very different ways in Austria. In some places, all plastic packaging was collected, in others only plastic bottles and beverage cartons were separated from the residual waste. With the turn of the year, the collection of plastic packaging is now made easier across the country.
Austrian households are among the most avid collectors in all of Europe. At the end of 2022, more than a million tons of packaging and waste paper will be collected again. The share of lightweight and metal packaging is just over 200,000 tons. For more than 90 percent of Austrians, the separate collection of packaging is already part of everyday life.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
