Recycling in 2005 was 23% of all refuse

The Ministry of the Environment’s Solid Waste Treatment Division announced last week that 77% of all refuse created in Israel in 2005, was sent to landfills and 23% was recycled.
 
The 23% is well compared with only 3% of refuse that was recycled in the early 1990s when 97% was sent to landfills.
 
The Solid Waste Treatment Division added that Israel generates 560 kilograms of refuse per capita per year, or 1.53 kg. per person per day.
 
Wealthy communities produce 4.47 kg. of refuse per person per day, compared with 1.2-1.7 kg. of refuse per person per day in low income municipalities such as Beer Sheva, Bnei Brak and Jerusalem. The study shows that Jerusalem produces the lowest amount of refuse per person per day.
 
The Ministry of the Environment’s Solid Waste Treatment Division noted, however, that in order to increase the proportion of recycled waste money has to be invested in the building of new recycling facilities around the country for generating electricity from refuse.
 
A study carried out by the Solid Waste Treatment Division showed that such facilities would enable more advanced waste treatment processes to be applied.