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Worldwide waste generation will reach 3.4 billion tons per year by 2050

A study by the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA), a non-profit organization that brings together professionals in the solid waste sector, predicts that the world’s waste generation will reach 3.4 billion tons per year by 2050.

In 2016, around 2 billion tons/year were produced. That is, there may be a 70% increase in discards.

The research shows that Brazil is the largest producer of urban waste in Latin America and the Caribbean, representing about 40% of what is thrown away. According to the Brazilian Association of Public Cleaning and Special Waste Companies (Abrelpe), the estimate is that the annual generation in the country will reach 100 million tons/year in 2030.

“We have two important factors in this result. The first is the population volume of Brazil. The second is that each Brazilian generates, on average, one kilo of waste per day. And that number has been growing”, explains the president of ISWA and Abrelpe, Carlos Silva Filho.

According to Abrelpe, in the list of the main waste in Brazil, organic waste comes first. They represent about 45% of everything produced in the country. Next come plastics, which are around 17%.

Given the perspective of the expansion of garbage in the world, one of the main points highlighted by the research is the management of materials after disposal.

In Brazil, collection coverage covers 92.2% of waste, which means that 6.4 million tons per year are not even removed from the generation points. This volume could fill three thousand Olympic swimming pools.

“About 40% of everything that is collected in Brazil goes to an open-air dump, which is a medieval system of disposal”, pointed out Silva Filho.

According to the study, about 30 million tons of waste are dumped in clandestine dumps per year in Brazil. This volume would fill 765 Maracanã stadiums and affect the health of 77.5 million people.

In April of this year, the Federal Government issued the decree that regulates the National Solid Waste Plan. The project defines goals, guidelines, programs and actions to achieve objectives in up to 20 years.

With the measure, a period of two years is established to end controlled dumps and landfills throughout the country. There are about three thousand units of this type in existence. Another goal is to recycle or recover 48.1% of urban solid waste. Currently, only about 2% are reused. The document must be updated every four years.

Source: CNN Brasil

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