In the coming years, a number of changes in the organization of waste management will come into force in Latvia. EU and national targets for the circular economy and climate neutrality, a higher tax on the disposal of natural resources, and an increase in energy, wages and other costs – all of which also increase the tariff on landfill waste. These changes will significantly affect the expenses of Latvian residents for the sorting of unsorted municipal waste. In short, you will have to change your habits drastically and start sorting, otherwise you will have to pay more.
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Environmental Management Company »Echo Baltia saw” a Latvian Green Dot (LZP) experts recommend five simple steps to reduce the cost of waste management.
Avoid waste
If we want to become more sustainable in our thinking, we have to start with our choices on store shelves, not buying what is not really necessary, but using the purchased one for as long as possible. Then there will also be less to dispose of in the waste container, what to manage and what to pay for. Although according to the Latvian Green Dot and Research Center “SKDS“According to a 2020 survey, 59 percent of the population admits that everyone has a responsibility to create waste, with only half trying to reduce their own waste on a daily basis – mainly by donating or returning unnecessary items, avoiding impulsive, unplanned purchases and choosing reusable packaging. .
An appropriate sorting infrastructure is requested
As the public’s awareness of the need for sorting increases, the network of sorting containers in Latvia is also becoming wider and more accessible. However, not all Latvians believe that the sorting infrastructure is quite close to their place of residence. At the same time, a survey conducted by LZP in 2020 shows that more than three quarters or 77 percent of Latvians who do not sort waste have never taken the initiative and approached their waste manager or municipality with a request to provide sorting containers near their place of residence. But everyone has that opportunity. Address the responsible authorities – the municipality, the waste manager and the house manager, and thus help to promote the availability of sorting infrastructure and reduce your waste management bill!
Use specialized sorting containers
The mathematics of waste management is quite simple – the higher the amount of unsorted household waste, the more you have to pay. Therefore, nothing more efficient than waste sorting has yet been devised. According to the calculations of “Eco Baltia vide”, by carefully sorting, bills for waste management can be halved.
Therefore, do not slip and put glass bottles in their container, cardboard, plastic, metal packaging, biodegradable waste – where they are placed -, textiles separately, so that as little waste as possible goes into the municipal waste container. Batteries and accumulators, end-of-life electrical equipment, and tires, which are also environmentally harmful waste, can also be disposed of separately from other waste, and their release into the environment can have a huge negative impact. Batteries and small electrical appliances can be handed over in specialized containers in supermarkets, but large household appliances, as well as tires, packaging, glass containers, metal, light bulbs, electrical appliances and other unnecessary items can be handed over to sorting areas, which are already widely available throughout Latvia – more than 70 locations. The collection of electrical equipment is also provided free of charge by waste management operators in many places. For example, “Eco Baltia vide” provides such a service in Riga, Ādaži, Salaspils, Babīte, Mārupe.
Learn about proper waste sorting
Although waste sorting opportunities may differ in different regions of Latvia, they are expanding every year. In addition, more information is available on where to sort and how to do it correctly. The first point to always turn to is your waste management operator, who provides waste removal on a daily basis, as well as sorting facilities. You can also ask your house manager and the municipality for information. Various companies and organizations are also playing an increasing role in promoting waste sorting, which is concerned with the sustainability of the environment and the reduction of waste. The main thing to remember is that as soon as you are ready to focus on waste sorting, the information will also seem much more accessible. It is not for nothing that, according to the survey data of the population of the Latvian Green Dot, waste is already sorted by 60 percent of the society in Latvia.
Remember 5P!
- Say no. Give up the redundant and harmful, do not buy things that are not recyclable or that you can do without!
- Reports. Choose what is environmentally friendly, such as products in recyclable packaging, taking care not to repack the product.
- Apply again. If you can use it again, use it!
- Transforms. Don’t throw it away, but find another purpose for it.
- Recycled. Sort and dispose of the environment. This will reduce the amount of waste you generate, become more environmentally friendly and cost less for waste management.
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