Recently, our activities has attracted the attention of the international press, specifically the Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS) station.
As part of the Tout un monde show, Benjamin, a reporter recognized for his interest in environmental concerns and sustainable companies, came to Romania to explore the challenges and solutions of plastic recycling in our country.
His visit to Buzău included discussions with Alina Genes, CEO of GreenTech, Mihaela Sofronea, Communications Director GreenGroup, and Bogdan Mînzală, GreenTech Production Director. The interview, conducted as a free discussion, focused on the impact of our work in plastics recycling and the challenges we face in the context of the circular economy.
You can listen to the full interview here.
You can also find below the transcript of the interview, translated from French into English.
This report gives us important international visibility and is a clear example of how our work is creating positive change in the recycling industry.
A Whole World, August 12, 2024
Radio Moderator: Romania is still facing challenges in recycling, particularly with packaging. Less than 40% of these are recycled, compared to over 60% on average in Europe. Plastic, of course, is a major issue, with fields and rivers inundated with waste. However, there are some improvements, and new European directives are being implemented.
Our correspondent in Romania, Benjamin Ribout, visited a significant European player in the recycling sector located northeast of the country’s capital.
Benjamin Ribout: About a hundred kilometers from Bucharest, the city of Buzău hosts a European recycling giant, GreenTech, a company established more than twenty years ago by a Taiwanese entrepreneur. Here, not only plastic but also other materials are recycled. Mihaela Sofronea, Communication Manager at GreenGroup, provides more details.
Mihaela Sofronea: “Waste from electrical and electronic equipment is recycled by our company GreenWEEE. PET plastic is recycled by GreenTech, with both companies being part of the GreenGroup umbrella brand. GreenTech is a European leader in PET bottle recycling. At our locations, both here in Buzău and in Slovakia and Lithuania, we have a recycling capacity of 150,000 tons of PET plastic per year.”
Benjamin Ribout: 150,000 tons of plastic recycled, which results in PET flakes, later transformed into products used across various industries. We enter the factory where plastic is recycled!
Mihaela Sofronea: Let's go inside the factory! Bales of plastic go through several processes, including de-baling, followed by flows for impurity removal, washing, sorting by color and type of material, and grinding. We also separate both caps and labels, which are made of polypropylene or PVC. The goal is to obtain clean PET flakes, free from other material mixtures, to manufacture PET band – binding material, synthetic polyester fiber, and rPET pellets, from which new bottles are produced. Look! In a sack full of flakes, which is 2 meters high and 1 meter wide, is the equivalent of 55,000 recycled plastic bottles.
Benjamin Ribout: Among recent measures, PET bottle manufacturers are now required to use 30% recycled material. Additionally, there is the RetuRO deposit-return system, implemented a few months ago, which has been a resounding success.
In recent months, nearly 80% of the plastic recycled at GreenTech comes from Romania. The current trend indicates a significant shift in the origin of recycled materials, explains GreenTech’s production director.
Bogdan Mînzală: Thanks to the RetuRO system, the PET plastic that reaches us is of much higher quality. It is of A++ grade, which significantly differentiates it from that coming from other sources. Public awareness has increased, and plastic bottles are now sorted and recycled with much more care than before, arriving at us in a much cleaner state. This aspect allows us to expand our production capacity and use fewer resources for cleaning. Collection has become much more accessible to consumers, as most large stores have collection points.
Benjamin Ribout: The RetuRO system allows consumers to recover 10 cents per plastic, metal, or glass bottle returned. In Romania, the responsibility for selective collection should lie with municipalities, but this approach faces difficulties, as explained by Alina Genes, General Manager of GreenTech.
Alina Genes: For the effective development of selective collection infrastructure nationwide, a corresponding financial contribution from all involved actors would have been necessary. However, the current costs applied for this service are insufficient, as is the landfill tax. As a result, disposing of or eliminating waste has become easier than directing it towards recycling.
Consequently, the country has adopted the deposit-return system, which, although it involves the highest infrastructure costs, ensures that the polluter bears the necessary expenses. With the RetuRO system, the waste collection rate could reach 70-80%. It is an unusual and accelerated model, but it seems well-suited to our region. In any case, it is the most efficient system in Europe regarding collection.
Benjamin Ribout: But there remains another major issue. What do we do with the enormous quantities of waste that are already in nature and are unlikely to ever be recycled?
We speak with Alexandra Tomescu, who, from July to September of last year, mapped the course of the Argeș River, from its source in the village of Căpățânenii Ungureni to its confluence with the Danube in the village of Oltenița. The aim of this mapping was to identify areas that could be included in future cleanup projects and to analyze local perceptions of waste-related issues.
Alexandra Tomescu: Authorities do not fulfill their responsibilities adequately, and the environmental oversight body does not conduct enough inspections. Also, it is necessary to improve education regarding the negative impact of littering packaging in nature. Unfortunately, this aspect is not addressed in schools.
We try to clean the riverbanks once or twice a year, but this is not a long-term solution. These cleanup actions should be carried out monthly. A study conducted by Asociația MaiMultVerde and FADI (Federation of Community Development Associations) indicates that hundreds of tons of plastic waste reach the Danube daily along its course through Romania, representing a significant quantity.
Benjamin Ribout: Another major challenge in collection is the equitable distribution of collection points across the entire territory, in a country still predominantly rural.
A report by Benjamin Ribout in Romania.
