Facts on Waste

What is Waste

Waste is a material, substance or byproduct eliminated or discarded as no longer useful or required after the comletion of a process.

Waste is one of the most challenging problems that humanity is currently facing.

Along with the industrial revolution, technology has developed gradually and in the meantime, waste production has increased rigorously. Technology, heavy industry and production got ahead, so as the waste production. Due to these developments in the industry, waste disposal became the common problem of humanity.

World population is expected to reach 7.7 billion by the end of 2020. Arbitrary and unplanned urbanisation can cause public spaces’ and natural resources’ impairment, air and water pollution and excessive waste production.

Rapid population growth, industrial developments and urbanisation brought the “waste” problem within themselves. Due to this problem, waste management system (collection, transportation and disposal of waste) in big cities cannot process seamlessly, it needs extra effort to keep our environment clean.

There are mainly 3 types of waste;

  • Household waste ( domestic waste / municipal solid waste)
  • Commercial Solid Waste
  • Industrail solid waste

Waste in numbers

What we throw away does not go away...

Non biodegradable products like plastic, metal and glass stay on the planet for up to 4000 years.

8 billion plastic bags are used and  disposed of annually in the world

2.2 billion tons of waste is produced annually

90% of the things we buy are thrownaway as waste in just 6 months

50% of the waste comes from single-use  products

12% of landfills consist of textile waste where 95% of textile waste is recyclable.

1 million plastic bottles are bougt every minute.

In 2020, more than 300 million tons of plastic will be produced wolrdwide. And every piece of plastic ever produces until today still exist somewhere.

Every year approximately 300 million tons of paper is used.( Naturalgreenway.com )

42% of global tree harvest is used to make paper. ( Terracycle )

If all of the trees in the world were cut, we’d have only 45 minutes left to live. (TC Milli Eğitim Bakanlığı)

25% of water pollution is caused by waste oil.

Every year 1 trillion of plastic bags are used. It equals to almost 1 million plastic bags every minute. ( Terracycle )

The world generates 2.01 billion tonnesof municipal solid waste annually,with at least 33% of that is not managed in an environmentally safe manner.

Worldwide, waste generated per person per day averages 0.74 kilogram but ranges widely, from 0.11 to 4.54 kilograms.

Though they only account for 16% of the world’s population, high-income countries generate about 34 percent, or 683 million tonnes, of the world’s waste.

When looking forward, global waste is expected to grow to 3.40 billiontonnesby 2050. ( Worl Bank Group "A Global Snapshot of Solid Waste Management to 2050")

More than one-third of waste in high-income countries is recovered  through recycling and composting.

Furthermore

80% of the water pollution is caused due to domestic sewage like throwing garbage on open ground and water bodies. – Conserve-energy-future.com)

1 liter of waste oil can contaminate 1 million liters of water.

A nickel cadmium battery can contaminate up to 600.000 liters of water.

Every year 8 million tons of waste end up in our oceans – (Science Magazine)

Glass and metal products can be recycled forever.

What can we do?

The only producer of waste is human beings.

Firstly, if we produce waste, we should dispose of it properly.

Secondly, in order to produce less waste, we should reconsider our consumption habits. For that:

  • We should prefer reusable products with less packaging.
  • We should prefer products that are recyclable, recycled, or reusable. For instance: avoid throwing away unused plastic, metal, or glass materials; give them new purposes by reusing them to help save our environment.
  • We should know that peels of vegetables and fruits, garden waste, and other organic waste can be composted. Learn how.
  • We should share the stuff we don’t use (books, clothes, electronics, etc.).
  • We should go digital! We don’t need printed bills—ask companies to send bills via email.
  • We should shop only when we need to, not just when we want to.
  • We should carry our own reusable products to keep ourselves and our environment clean—like reusable bottles and reusable bags.
  • Use gamification in the family! Challenge family members to produce less waste and recycle more.
  • Become an advocate of the Mind Your Waste Foundation by raising awareness in your social circle, encouraging proper waste disposal, and setting an example of reducing, reusing, and recycling. Teach your friends, family, and colleagues.
  • You can make donations for our ongoing projects.