Portuguese need to recycle more, confirms data revealed by the association Zero
Environmental association Zero regrets that recycling remains "shamefully at 21%" and that the 447 million euros spent to promote "an effective public policy" in the sector have been to no avail.
"Public authorities and policy makers continue to pretend that there is not a very serious situation with the management of resources, which could be fostering the circular economy, but end up deposited in landfill or are burned," the association said in a statement, regarding the Annual Report on Municipal Waste (RARU2021), available on the portal of the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA).
Zero says that "poor accounting and manipulation are not enough to hide the stagnation of recycling" and calls for an urgent change in the management of urban waste.
In the statement, the association also casts doubt on the quality of data provided by APA regarding the final destination of waste, landfill, energy recovery, material recycling, composting and other recoveries.