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| Picture: dumping of dacha waste is relatively harmless compared to the illegally run commercial landfill sites elsewhere. | |
Sonntag, 28.08.2011
Overflowing landfills: Moscow threatened to drown in garbage
Moscow. The Russian Capital is threatened to be drowned in its own garbage. Moscow produces tons of garbage on a daily basis. The landfills in and around the city have been overflowing for some time.
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House entrances in Moscow how their own smell, a little stuffy and rotten in almost every apartment building. The reason: Virtually all apartment blocks are equipped with a garbage chute.
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Out of the window, out of the mind
Everything ends up there, whatever is no longer needed, spoilt or broken: left over food, wrapping, bottles, batteries etc. Waste separation does not exist. There are even some people for whom the trip to the garbage chute is too far and throw their waste out of the window.
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It is difficult to get rid of garbage when in town, as trash cans are rare. Cigarette stumps, beer cans and used metro tickets are thrown onto the street. The city cleaning department may clear it away.
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Landfills are overwhelmed
Even if everything has been disposed off properly, the problem is still massive. The official landfill sites in Moscow, Domodedovo and the areas around Khimki, Orekhovo-Zuyevo and Leninski are overflowing. According to court resolution they should have been closed for some time, but due to a lack of alternatives they are still open.
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As their capacity is insufficient, numerous illegal dumps and landfills are created. According to the Technical Authority there are at least 50 different, larger landfills that are operated by clever entrepreneurs that have no legal rights nor do they have a special plan for waste recycling.
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Saving at the expense of the environment
A modern garbage disposal plant with a filtration system would cost €50 million according to Russian media reports. But the entrepreneurs save the money on the expense of the environment. While the complaints of the authorities are being investigated, the entrepreneurs earn between 200 and 300 million rubles (€5 - 7.5 million) per year by accepting the garbage. The garbage mountains grow and poison the soil and ground water.
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Total collapse in 2015
By 2013, most likely a third of all official landfills throughout Moscow will have reached their limit. In 2015, the two existing large landfills in Moscow will close. By then Moscow will drown in garbage, warn experts.
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A rethinking of waste policy is needed
Ecologists are calling for a drastic rethinking of garbage disposal. They advise that the European systems of waste separation should be introduced. This is an important condition in order to change the focus from storage to process when opening new landfills.
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There are some small signs to be seen. The aim is to create recycle points in Moscow for batteries who`s mercury content are particularly damaging for the environment.
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The Austrian energy provider EVN operates since 2007 garbage incinerators that are able to process 360,000 tons of waste a year. An increase in environmentally friendly waste disposal technologies must be top priority for the Moscow city government.
Original German text can be found here >>>
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