Vejen finds half of household residual waste was wrongly sorted

About half of the waste in residual rubbish bins from detached homes in Vejen Municipality should have been sorted for recycling, a municipal survey reported by DR found. The share was nearly 60 per cent for waste from apartments.

Municipal employees sorted 1,159 kilograms of residual waste from 393 private homes to find out what residents were putting in the wrong bin. Three employees spent four full days on the work.

Food waste and food packaging were the most common items sorted incorrectly in both types of housing. In apartment buildings, food waste made up 20 per cent of the incorrectly sorted rubbish. Garden waste was the third-largest category; bags of leaves and moss, as well as large branches, should be taken to a recycling centre.

Hard and soft plastics were found in almost every bag of residual waste. Sorting rules vary between municipalities, but Vejen residents put both types of plastic in the same bin. Clothing accounted for 2.2 per cent of the incorrectly sorted waste. Clean, intact textiles should go for reuse, while torn or dirty textiles should be disposed of as textile waste.

The employees also found bags containing needles, both capped and uncapped. Needles should never go in residual waste and must be handed in at a pharmacy. Most pharmacies can provide an approved container for storing them.

May-Britt Heissel Skov, a waste consultant at Vejen Municipality, said she was surprised by the amount of food waste and plastic in the residual rubbish. The municipality hopes the findings will help residents change their habits and send more waste for recycling.

Vejen Municipality says packaging does not need to be rinsed, but should be empty and free of large amounts of food. Items should be separated as much as possible, though lids can remain on jam jars. When unsure, residual waste is generally the best option, but hazardous waste such as partly filled paint or chemical containers must be kept out of it. Packaging such as crisp and coffee bags can require different sorting, so residents should check the instructions on the packaging.