(ANSA) - ROME, DECEMBER 03 - The direct benefits of recycling in Italy, in 2019, exceeded one billion euros in economic value, while the saving of virgin raw material was "impressive", 4 million and 469 thousand tons equal to the weight of 440 Eiffel towers .
These are some of the results contained in the Green Economy Report of the National Packaging Consortium (Conai) which, in partnership with the Sustainable Development Foundation, presented the results of the activities of the consortium system.
The Conai president Luca Ruini and the president of the Sustainable Development Foundation Edo Ronchi illustrated and commented on the Report together with Filomena Maggino, president of the "Benessere Italia" directing cabin (Presidency of the Council of Ministers), and Maria Cristina Piovesana, Vice president Confindustria with responsibility for the environment, sustainability and culture.
Last year 53% of packaging waste delivered to the Anci-Conai agreement came from Northern Italy, 28% from the South and 19% from the Central regions.
But those of the Mezzogiorno in the last five years have recorded the highest per capita delivery of packaging waste.
The report underlines that between 1998 and 2019 the Conai system guaranteed the recycling of almost 32 million tons of packaging, avoiding the filling of 160 new medium-sized landfills in 22 years.
In detail, through recycling 270 million tons of steel were saved, equal to the quantity used for 702 Frecciarossa trains;
over 19 thousand tons of aluminum, which corresponds to 1.8 billion cans;
one million and 80 thousand tons of paper, or more than 433 million reams of A4 sheets;
907 thousand tons of wood, the equivalent of 41 million pallets;
433 thousand tons of plastic, equal to 9 billion PET bottles for one-liter detergents and one million and 760 thousand tons of glass, the equivalent of almost 5 billion 0.75-liter bottles of wine.
Almost 23 terawatt hours of primary energy have been saved (compared to 21 in 2018), i.e. the average annual electricity consumption of 6 million Italian households, and the emission of over 4 million and 300 thousand tons of Co2, equal to that generated by about 10 thousand Rome flights. New York gone and back.
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