Austria definitely takes environmental care seriously and the proof of that is the announcement that it topped the European Recycling league. The country has a very impressive record of 63% waste that are being recycled and composted. Not far behind are countries like Germany with an equally impressive rate of 62%, Belgium with 58%, Netherlands and Switzerland both with 51%.
Though five countries have already passed the European Union’s target of recycling 50% of wastes by the year 2020, there are still more countries yet to follow. The European Environmental Agency or EEA says that while it’s good that some countries are showing interest and making a change for this cause, there’s still so much work to do to pass the EU mandated target.
Countries like Bulgaria and Romania need to make some drastic changes in order to achieve the goal, which means recycling 4% more per year. The UK has also shown some dramatic improvement having the record of recycling 12% in 2001 to 39% in 2010. However high the improvement is over the years, it is still not enough to pass the EU target. The government assures that it is working hard on making the environment better through the method of recycling.
There are so many advantages to recycling and if more and more people are aware of the benefits not just in the European countries, then more people will be convinced to follow suit. Countries should encourage any movement that supports recycling, be it through products, programs, campaigns, etc.
Recycling helps rid of pollution, keeps the landfills from piling up and lessens the need to take anything away from the environment. It shouldn’t just be done once but it should become a lifestyle if people care about living in a world where nature can be enjoyed. The smallest move done today can have a really large impact in the future.
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