Efficient recycling is the future and the throwaway society will hopefully be a thing of the past. Only with rethinking and concrete solutions we can ensure that the environment is protected in the long term and that sufficient resources and raw materials are available to future generations. This is a key reason why the Green Dot has chosen “Take it and shape it” as a maxim.
When the Packaging Ordinance obliged industry and commerce to take back and reuse their packaging, trade and industry founded the Green Dot as a second (dual) system alongside the public waste disposal system. Since 1991, we have been collecting packaging waste and using it to extract secondary raw materials that flow back into the economic cycle. And with success! In 2017, the companies with the Green Dot recycled around 1.8 million tonnes of waste, and through recycling we avoided 1.1 million tonnes of emissions of CO2 equivalents. The future also sounds promising: every year the dual system Der Grüne Punkt fulfills the quotas from the Packaging Ordinance and even surpasses them.
Waste separation. This is how we can achieve a clean future!
Waste separation, i.e. the separation of valuable materials, is essential for efficient recycling. In Germany, most households have collection containers for five different types of waste: glass, paper and cardboard, lightweight packaging (LWP) made of plastic, aluminum, tinplate and composite materials, as well as residual waste and biowaste. And basically, trash sorting is quite simple: paper, cardboard and cardboard packaging belong into the waste paper collection; color-sorted bottles and container glass into the dropoff containers (please put blue glass into the green glass container!). In the yellow bin or the yellow sack only light weight packaging made of metal, composite material and plastic is collected. Residual waste and biowaste each have their own bins.
The inside of a sorting plant for packaging waste
Everything that is collected in the yellow bag and the yellow garbage can in Germany first goes to a special sorting plant. Unfortunately, only very few people know what happens in such a plant. With the 360-degree video of the Initiative Mülltrennung wirkt (Waste Separation Initiative), anyone with a computer or smartphone can now wander through such a state-of-the-art facility in Germany and view and explain each machine in detail (sorry, only in German language).
Nine dual systems are currently permitted in Germany, which use the yellow bins or bags, the dropoff containers for glass and paper barrels to collect used sales packaging. Der Grüne Punkt - Dual System Germany GmbH with the Green Dot as a trademark has been the first dual system to build this near-to-home collection system.
But what does waste separation do for the environment? Don't we end up using more energy through recycling than we save? How does the work of the Green Dot contribute to climate protection? To this end, the Green Dot prepares an annual environmental balance sheet that answers precisely these questions.
Der Grüne Punkt stands for producer responsibility
Consumers recognize the Green Dot as the well-known trademark of Der Grüne Punkt – Duales System Deutschland GmbH. It is protected in over 170 countries, enjoys a high level of recognition, and stands for competence.
Dual systems such as Der Grüne Punkt in Cologne organize the collection, sorting and recycling of used sales packaging for industry and trade throughout Germany. In doing so, they fulfill the so-called extended producer responsibility (EPR) for manufacturers of packaged products. Under the Packaging Act, manufacturers are obliged to participate in a dual system for the packaging they place on the market so that this system can collect the used packaging and send it for recycling. This service costs money, and the manufacturer pays a so-called participation fee to their dual system.
When the ‘DigiDot’ with the Der Grüne Punkt trademark in the center is printed on a packaging, the manufacturer is indicating that it complies with the requirements of the Packaging Act and assumes responsibility for collecting and sorting its packaging. In addition, the digitally readable QR code offers many interesting additional functions and information. Consumers can view specific information about the packaging and how to dispose of it correctly, and can find the nearest waste disposal point. The use of the DigiDot QR code thus provides a wealth of important information and actively contributes to closing the circular economy.
Manufacturers who use the DigiDot for their packaging must conclude an additional trademark license agreement with Der Grüne Punkt in Cologne. A valid participation agreement for their packaging with a dual system is a prerequisite for this. The printing of the DigiDot does not indicate whether and to what extent the packaging in question is recyclable.
