The country will only meet the target if each Portuguese recycles two more glass bottles per month

Packaging recycling continues to grow, with the exception of this material

The Portuguese continue to recycle more and more, with 108,368 tonnes of packaging collected in the national ecopoints in the first quarter of 2023, which means an increase of 3% compared to the same period in 2022. The country thus continues to achieve the targets for packaging recycling, with the exception of glass which deserves particular attention.

According to data from the Integrated System for Packaging Waste Management (SIGRE) and reversing a growth trend observed over the last two years, as a result of a specific strategy to increase the selective collection of this material, glass showed a 2% reduction in the first three months of this year, compared to the same period under review (approximately one ton less).

Considering that the current national recycling rate of this material is 56% and the goal is to reach 75% by 2025, a greater mobilisation by all Portuguese is fundamental: if each citizen recycles at least two more glass bottles per month, the goals will not only be achieved but surpassed.

"The communication and awareness campaigns of Sociedade Ponto Verde, focused on packaging recycling, are permanently taking place, and this is the only urban stream to meet the national targets, with the exception of glass. It is therefore essential to convene everyone, when the country has new targets to achieve, not only in packaging but also in other materials that are part of our daily lives as consumers," says Ana Trigo Morais, CEO of Sociedade Ponto Verde.

"We are therefore counting on all Portuguese people to recycle more packaging, namely glass, where, effectively, the challenge is greater, but we should not forget the other materials, such as aluminium, paper/cardboard or plastic. For this to happen, we need more separation and also a better level of municipal collection service", he concludes.

The SIGRE performance data, in the first quarter of 2023, also reveal that 36,620 tonnes of paper/cardboard (+9%) and 19,589 tonnes of plastic (+2%) were sent for recycling, compared to the same period in 2022. The most significant growth was verified in cardboard packaging for liquid foods (ECAL), whose recycling amounted to 2,161 tonnes (+10%). These data reveal an increase in recycling in schools, in which there is a more significant volume of beverage packs, and that these are being correctly deposited in the yellow recycling bin, as a result of educational actions promoted by Sociedade Ponto Verde among students and teachers.