Environment
Germany exports less plastic waste
A discarded plastic bottle in the Red Sea off Egypt. Photo
© Andrey Nekrasov/Zuma Press/dpa
Germany exports much less plastic waste than it did ten years ago. But the country is clearly at the top of the EU. And millions of tons of plastic continue to end up in the oceans every year.
And where was the plastic waste taken? According to the information, the largest amount was exported to the Netherlands. “At almost 131,600 tons, almost a fifth of all exported plastic waste went to the neighboring European country, which has an important transshipment point for sea freight with the port of Rotterdam,” it said. This was followed by Malaysia (a good 90,500 tons) and Turkey (a good 87,100 tons).
Germany will also be the largest exporter of plastic waste in the EU in 2023
In the European Union (EU), Germany is – as in the previous year – the largest exporter of plastic waste. According to the EU statistics agency Eurostat, the Netherlands was once again in second place with a good 550,500 tonnes, followed by Belgium with an export volume of almost 436,400 tonnes.
The Federal Office announced the data on the occasion of World Oceans Day on June 8. The day is intended to remind people of the ecological importance of the oceans. At the same time, it is intended to raise awareness of the threats they face, for example from plastic waste and other pollution, climate change and overfishing.
It is estimated that between 4.8 and 12.7 million tons of plastic end up in the oceans every year. The amount of plastic waste produced worldwide threatens to triple by 2060 if nothing changes, according to an OECD study. Plastic production is based primarily on petroleum.