Tag: Waste management
German environmental aid criticizes the “mania for demolition” of buildings
Energy & Climate According to DUH, CO2 emissions are reduced by a third when a building is renovated compared to a new one. (Photos: Getty Images, Imago, dpa; Montage: Handelsblatt)…
Tesla to change plans for expanded battery factory
Tesla’s “Gigafactory” in Brandenburg The company says it wants to double the factory’s production capacity of 500,000 cars. (Photo: Reuters) Grünheide The US electric car manufacturer Tesla is to change…
Why the bottled water brand is using less recycled plastic
Gerolsteiner apple spritzer in non-returnable PET bottles “Unfortunately, at the beginning of the year we had to reduce the recycling percentage to 30 percent,” explains company boss Roel Annega. (Photo:…
What the new EU rules mean for consumers
Brussels On Wednesday, the EU Parliament passed new rules for batteries. For the first time, these are now regulated along the entire life cycle. “It’s revolutionary,” says Green MEP Malte…
“Germany is the brake on ecology”
Mainz Reinhard Schneider lives up to his reputation. The owner of the frog cleaning agent manufacturer Werner & Mertz is known for vociferously criticizing his own industry. “Companies try to…
Why bottles and glasses are scarce and expensive
Glass bottles from Coca-Cola The Ukraine war caused a delay of more than a year for the bottler. (Photo: Bloomberg) Dusseldorf The Henkell Freixenet winery fills an estimated 300 million…
How renewable resources are replacing petroleum
Dusseldorf Anyone who drives past huge chemical plants on the Autobahn between Cologne and Bonn would have no idea: old chip fat is being processed here, possibly from your last…
A recycling cycle full of holes – Europe is sinking into yoghurt pots, milk cartons and shampoo bottles
plastic waste Europe has a massive plastic problem. The continent is sinking into yoghurt pots, milk cartons and shampoo bottles. (Photo: dpa) Berlin Small bits of plastic are stuck to…
Lidl is resisting the introduction of a multiple-use obligation
Dusseldorf The Schwarz Group sees itself as a pioneer in the sustainable use of plastic. The bottles for the drinks of all their own brands for the subsidiaries Lidl and…
Why manufacturers find it so difficult
Dusseldorf Consumers see the beginning of the plastic revolution with every purchase. On many shampoo tubes or detergent bottles, manufacturers advertise that they use more recycled plastic in their packaging.…
The EU creates a right to repair – but the effect is unclear
clothes dryer According to EU plans, manufacturers should repair devices more often instead of replacing them. (Photo: dpa) Brussels The EU Commission has high hopes for its plan to introduce…
How the EU wants to boost the production of lithium & co
lithium source According to a study by the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), the import quota is 100 percent for 14 of the 27 critical raw materials. (Photo: Bloomberg/Getty…
Food for the bin – an overview in graphics
Despite many efforts, the resources for the production of food are still unequally distributed around the world: While people are suffering from hunger in many regions, richer countries live in…
Europe’s largest start-up center launches circular economy initiative
Founders in UnternehmerTUM The Munich start-up center UnternehmerTUM has been supporting young people in founding start-ups for 20 years. Photo: UnternehmerTUM Munich In view of fragile supply chains, a shortage…
Retailers are not the problem when food is thrown away
Young people get groceries from a ton The federal government wants to legalize the so-called containers. (Photo: imago images/Sabine Gudath) Basically, we should all be ashamed: it cannot seriously be…
We all need to outlaw food waste
Young people get groceries from a ton The federal government wants to legalize the so-called containers. (Photo: imago images/Sabine Gudath) Basically, we should all be ashamed: it cannot seriously be…
This company has solved the problem of plastic waste
sample depots The strategists (from left): Laetitia-Zarah Gerbes (Acatis Investment), Gabriele Hartmann (Perspective Asset Management) and David Wehner (Do Investment). (Photo: private) Frankfurt Let’s start the year with optimism –…
Turning waste into profit – A new global trend is emerging
Cologne The World Bank calculated in 2018 that people leave behind two billion tons of garbage worldwide every year. And by 2050 the mountain is likely to grow to 3.4…
New packaging obligation 2023: Restaurateurs struggle with reusable tableware
Dusseldorf Disposable packaging for food and drinks creates huge mountains of waste. According to the Federal Environment Ministry, around 320,000 disposable cups for hot drinks are used every hour in…
“Urban mining” can become the engine for the global circular economy
Wrecked cars in a junkyard Valuable raw materials can be found in car wrecks, ruined buildings and old electronic devices. (Photo: IMAGO/Peter Widmann) It is an invaluable treasure that slumbers…