Published in Scientific Papers. Series "Journal of Young Scientist", Vol. 7
Written by Bogdan Alexandru COSTACHE, Georgiana-Camelia BODNĂRAŞ
By studying the literature and the information available on various sites, we noticed that Sweden is the country with the most advanced and efficient waste collection and recycling system. Sweden is a top performer when it comes to sorting and recycling its waste and is in the rare situation of lacking garbage at its incineration centres, which produce enough electricity to supply 250,000 homes and heating for 950,000 homes. Swedish municipalities are individually investing in futuristic waste collection techniques, like automated vacuum systems in residential blocks, removing the need for collection transport, and underground container systems that free up road space and get rid of any smells. In the Romania, each local authority has its own system, making it difficult for residents to be confident about what they can recycle and where. We think we need more of a coherent national strategy in Romania to the collection of recyclable materials, rather than the current approach, whereby it is largely left to individual local authorities to determine their own collection policies.
Don’t waste more time and money – let’s get started! A holistic mindset is the key! Getting the whole system and industry involved creates the best conditions for the changes and actions needed to make waste management truly sustainable. It means getting the municipal sector (where the infrastructure is, or should to be) and the private sector (which sells the technology and services) to work together. Both inside municipalities and between municipalities!
Making this happen creates scope for long-term planning – and short-term action. For getting priorities right and starting at the right end of the chain. And for agreeing who should do what and why.
This paper aims to draw the attention of all people to the importance of separate collection of waste and reuse. For this purpose we created two questionnaires which we addressed to all categories of people in terms of age and social status. Surveys have accumulated a total of 154 and 117 responses, respectively.
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