Separate collection is a method of waste disposal in which waste is sorted by type and sent for further processing. This is necessary not only to save resources, but also to improve the environmental situation.
Separate collection can significantly reduce the number of landfills and prevent waste rotting; there is no need to burn it. And the high cost of sorting is more than compensated for by the income from the production of various things from recyclable materials.
Plants for the processing of various types of plastic, waste paper, metal and glass operate in Russia. However, they all suffer from a shortage of recyclable materials. The reason is the lack of a centralized system and infrastructure for separate collection, as well as a low level of public awareness.
Probably, many have seen multicolored containers for various types of waste abroad. Their colors are uniform. Green is for glass, blue is for paper, yellow is for cardboard, orange is for plastic, black is for organic, food waste, red is for non-recyclable waste and, finally, black is for hazardous waste (batteries, blisters). In Russia, such containers are not often found: they are installed in a number of shopping centers, at train stations, in some courtyards - at the initiative of local residents.
But fortunately, more and more people across the country are starting to take the initiative and organize environmental and educational campaigns for separate collection. The most striking achievement of recent years has been the activity of the movement of the same name, which appeared in 2011 in St. Petersburg. To date, it has already covered Moscow and the Moscow region (Zhukovsky, Lyubertsy, Fryazino, Troitsk, Odintsovo), as well as a number of other cities: Veliky Novgorod, Yaroslavl, Kaluga.
Separate Collection events are held every first Saturday of the month and are organized by local volunteers. In Zhukovsky alone, about a hundred cubic meters of solid household waste was collected from seven shares and one permanent collection point. Several tens of kilograms of batteries were also taken. Considering that a single battery, according to Greenpeace, poisons more than 10m2 of soil or 300 liters of water, the benefits to nature are enormous.
