The State Comptroller's report addressed the problem of landfilling in Israel, which will mean that in four years there will be no place for landfilling in Israel and the fact that there is not enough recycling and reuse of waste in Israel.
To understand what more can be done in the field to prevent the country from degenerating into a waste disaster, we spoke with Gadi Konya, CEO of Infinia (formerly Hadera Paper), whose plant has been recycling and producing recycled waste paper for years.
What methods are there today for recycling?
He explains that the main point in waste is its separation.
"The technologies available today for recycling make it possible to recycle each material individually, when it does not contain residues of additional materials - for example, cardboard and paper, metals, glass and other materials. So beyond encouraging the public to recycle as much as possible, it is important to encourage waste separation Will be easily recyclable.
"Advanced recycling technology", Photo: Oren Ben Hakon
"Recycling companies have difficulty, using the technologies that exist today, both separating the types of waste and recycling efficiently. That is, beyond advanced technologies that exist in the world today, separation at source (in different bins) is most effective. "Because it is mixed with other waste (such as household waste), it is transferred to landfill."
How can the state encourage recycling?
"When it comes to recycling - education is the key word. It is important to explain educate and encourage as many residents as possible to recycle more and more waste, otherwise it will be difficult to live a sustainable life in the world. Israel must cultivate a culture of recycling, "
Beyond public education, Gadi Konya also calls on the state to enter the field more and act in favor of recycling factors.
"Unfortunately, regulation in Israel does not encourage the use of additional technologies as a substitute for landfilling. Here the State of Israel can learn from countries in Europe that manage to meet the recycling targets they set and examine what methods and technologies they use. "Energy (steam and / or electricity), and this has passed the landfill," he says.
What else can the public do in the field?
In my opinion, the public in Israel must make efforts to recycle more.
As mentioned, the manner of recycling and separation at source is critical and will determine whether it will really be possible to recycle the waste.
The separation itself originally reduces the amount of waste that goes to landfill and makes it easier for the companies that treat the waste and recycle it.
Unfortunately, the problem is that today there is not enough separation in the recycling bins in the country, and the earth pays the price.
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