Recycling: Ein wichtiges Instrument, aber kein Allheilmittel

1993

1 Lit. Ang.

Unselbständiges Werk

4201

200059681

People who think that recycling will cure most of our environmental ills should think again - there are sound scientific reasons to believe that, if we push recycling too far, we might do more harm to environment than good. In Germany the proposed targets for recycling of all used paper and paper packaging are 52 percent in 1994. The problem is that, while the environmental gains made through recycling are obvious, the environmental costs are not. The result of recycling all of our waste paper would probably be more air pollution, higher consumption of fossil fuels, and less healthy forests. Without proper silvicultural management, Europe's forests would become more susceptible to disease, insects, decay, and fire. A preliminary study at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis indicates that the net effect of large-scale recycling of paper would be greater emissions of airborne sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and carbon dioxide. One thing seems clear: closed-loop recycling is not a cure-all. It has an important place in any sound environmental planning, but a blind allegiance to recycling is bad policy.