Project Drawdown counts recycling as the increased recovery of recyclable materials, excluding paper and organic material, from the industrial and residential sectors. Recyclable waste such as metals, plastic and glass makes up roughly 37% of global municipal solid waste; recovering it replaces landfilling and reduces the production of new materials.
For Gelderland the effect runs mainly through less material heading to the landfill. At present, 71% of landfilled waste consists of organic material, and the reference scenario assumes 600,000 tonnes of landfilled waste, made up of 35% municipal waste, 20% industrial waste and 25% landfilled soil, among other streams. Recycling is therefore not modelled in isolation but in conjunction with composting and landfill gas capture, because the three solutions reinforce one another. Source: Climate Action Recap Gelderland (industry and business sector analysis), New Economy.