Plastic packaging: In Reinach, the mail goes off as of June

From June 2021, the postman in the Basel municipality of Reinach will not only deliver letters and parcels. On weekdays, he will also collect empty plastic bottles and beverage cartons that residents deposit in the "recycling sack" by the mailboxes. The 35-liter recycling sack is available from the municipality for 1.80 francs. The postmen transport the collected sacks to the Reinach post office, from where they are taken to a specialized sorting plant run by Müller Recycling AG in Frauenfeld. This clever logistics system eliminates the need for additional unecological trucking, because the plastics travel to the sorting plant in a container that would have to be returned to Swiss Post's logistics center anyway, according to the company, which specializes in recycling management. Redilo writes. Behind the pioneering project are "realCYCLE" by Redilo and the Migros Pioneer Fund, is made possible by the pilot. "This pilot project exemplifies how simply the plastics circular economy of tomorrow can work," says Corinne Grässle, project manager of the Migros Pioneer Fund. "This will make society less dependent on increasingly scarce raw materials."

New products are created from recycled plastic

Plastic bottles for shampoo, cleaning agents and the like are optimal for recycling: The high-quality recyclable material usually consists of only one plastic, which is important for recycling, emphasizes Melanie Haupt, co-project manager of "realCYCLE" and lecturer in recycling management at ETH Zurich.

The initiators emphasize that the return of plastic bottles for recycling is facilitated by the pilot project and that that of beverage cartons is made possible in the first place. The mixture of collected plastic bottles and beverage cartons is sorted by a company in Frauenfeld and prepared for recycling. The sorted plastic material is then shredded, washed and processed into regranulate in Switzerland: This is ultimately used to create new plastic products again.

In the Reinach pilot project, only plastic bottles and beverage cartons are collected, but no other plastic packaging such as yogurt pots or films. "In this way, we can ensure that the plastics collected are also recycled in Switzerland," says co-project manager Haupt. She has been involved in research for many years analyzing waste streams and the possibilities of plastic recycling. For beverage cartons, she says, there is currently no recycling plant in Switzerland, which is why they are currently recycled in Germany and France. While the cardboard fiber is used for corrugated cardboard, the remaining aluminum-plastic mixture is either used as fuel or for other products, as further communicated.

Close relevant loop gap

The offer in Reinach BL is intended to close a relevant gap in the plastic cycle. "The collection by Swiss Post makes it easier for the population to collect recyclable plastics separately and have them collected from the letterbox on their doorstep. Swiss Post has the necessary logistics and know-how to operate such a collection system in a sustainable manner," says Patrick Lampert, Head of the Circular Economy Unit at Post CH AG.

According to information, the pilot project will run for six months. But an initial interim assessment will be made after three months in the form of a survey of the people of Reinach, reveals Melanie Haupt in response to an inquiry from Umwelt Perspektiven. Then it will become clear whether the Swiss also want to become the recycling world champions in this area.

However, an expansion of the collection area is already planned on the part of "realCYCLE", according to the communication on the Reinach project. In a further step, they also want to test whether rural and remote areas can be more easily connected to disposal structures. According to recycling specialist Haupt, the ambition on the part of "realCYCLE" is great to find a national solution. "The pilot project is a first step towards a sustainable circular economy, where existing synergies are used in the best possible way," says Haupt.

Financing issue unresolved

The question still remains as to why the "recycling sack" is not given away free of charge? "Someone has to pay the costs for logistics, etc.," answers Haupt, because the yield of the raw material is not sufficient for this. Furthermore, the ETH lecturer on recycling management points out that, in contrast to PET, aluminum and the like, there is still no financing in the form of an advance recycling fee for the polluters. However, corresponding efforts are underway.

And what does the local authority say?

"When we heard about the pilot project, it was clear that we would participate," says Reinach local councilor Doris Vögeli. "Because the selective collection of plastic has been on our radar for some time." A political mandate from the Reinach parliament (Motion 140 "Plastics recycling in Reinach") requires the development of a concept for the introduction of a selective collection of plastic bottles and beverage cartons. The aim of this pilot project is to gather experience and find out whether the population is willing to take advantage of the offer. The decisive factor is whether enough material is collected.

Source: Redilo

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