Friesland in the waste check: Who produces the most waste?

Friesland in the waste check: Who produces the most waste?

Last year, waste production in Friesland presented an exciting spectrum. The municipality of Smallingerland is one step ahead when it comes to particularly environmentally friendly behavior. With only around 145 kilos of residual waste per resident, they are the best students in the waste avoidance class book. In contrast, Weststellingwerf is much higher at 267 kilos per capita. Similar scenarios also show Heerenveen with 159 kilos and Harlingen with 257 kilos of residual waste. The Frisians clearly see themselves in a waste battle, with the Wadden Islands, especially Schiermonnikoog, scoring heavily in terms of landfill due to increased tourism - a whopping 620 kilos per inhabitant are recorded here, which makes them the top place. On average, each Dutch person produced 179 kilos of residual waste last year, and this is one kilo more than the previous year, as Omrop Fryslan reports.

But what happens to all this garbage? This is where the Rijkswaterstaat organization comes into play. This has created an online database called Swing, which not only records the amounts of waste, but also its composition and the costs incurred by citizens. The data collected forms the basis for new reports published jointly with the Nederlandse Vereniging van Reinigingsdiensten (NVRD). The latter even organizes a benchmark Huishoudelijk Afval, which allows municipalities to compare their waste figures and guide policy measures. If any questions arise, the Afvalbeheer helpdesk is available. This leaves no question unanswered as to how waste is dealt with, as Afval Circulair explains.

Does the right molecule filter?

When looking for waste recycling solutions, it is important to choose the right paths to achieve sustainable results. Chemical considerations are important here. When choosing a target molecule, everything depends on the project goals. Whether it is about finding the right molecule for new drugs or commercially valuable products, the efficiency of synthesis and structural verification are the focus. This is a balancing act that chemists must master. While the academic focus is on elegant syntheses, industrial chemists prioritize cost and profitability. This shows how crucial it is to combine economical and environmentally friendly solutions to ultimately not only make a profit, but also protect the environment, as Chem LibreTexts/03%3A_Criteria_for_Selection_of_the_Synthetic_Route) notes.

In this exciting time of change, communities in Friesland have the opportunity not only to behave in an environmentally conscious manner, but also to find innovative ways to avoid waste and, ideally, convert it into new resources. Achieving less residual waste could be easier than expected with the right measures and strategies.