SINGAPORE — Property agent Rose Tan throws her domestic waste in the designated blue recycling bins below her flat two to three times a day.
“Things like metal cans can be remade into something else, and they’re very useful for us. Why waste it?” said the 75-year-old.
According to NEA statistics, the domestic recycling rate stood at 12 per cent last year, the lowest level in over a decade, and down from 22 per cent in 2018 and 13 per cent in 2021. Associate Professor Tong Yen Wah from the National University of Singapore’s College of Design and Engineering said that the drop in the domestic recycling rate is a concern because non-recycled waste goes to incinerators producing bottom ash.“This will affect the nation’s goal of achieving a zero-waste nation and also complicate our efforts to extend the life of Pulau Semakau,” said Assoc Prof Tong, who is from NUS’ College of Design and Engineering.
On its part, the Government has made a push for recycling in recent years, including strengthening local recycling capabilities and launching a campaign on how to reduce contamination of recyclable waste. Besides China, other countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia have also tightened their requirements for recycling waste imports. This has affected recyclable waste exports globally.
NEA had previously said that this waste was exported to countries including Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea and Thailand for processing and recycling.TODAY has asked the NEA and Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment for updated figures on the amount of recyclable waste, including domestic waste, exported.
For domestic recycling, Singapore uses a single-stream recyclables collection system where every residential block is given a blue recycling bin for residents to use. All recyclable trash is then thrown into the bin and sorted centrally.
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