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Fighting the paper cup
Banning disposable crockery
Munich, the capital city of the state of Bavaria, Germany, started to develop a waste avoidance approach to address the problem of disposable tableware and its associated waste. As early as 1991, the local government banned the use of disposable paper plates, plastic cups, forks and knives at large-scale public events. They are replaced by reusable items for which consumers pay a deposit that they get back when they bring back the items. This significantly reduced the waste volume generated by events like the Oktoberfest, the Christmas market, Auer-Dult Faire and the Munich City Marathon.
In the Oktoberfest alone, the quantity of residual waste was divided by 20 in 9 years (from 11,000 tonnes in 1990 to 550 tonnes in 1999). The participation of all enterprises involved in the Oktoberfest in the introduction of reusable tableware strongly contributes to this success. This event is now based on a strong and well-accepted ecological concept and received the “Eco-Oscar” awarded by Federal Government of Germany in 1997.
A crockery and dishwasher renting service for small events
 For smaller-scale events, organisers may find expensive to buy enough reusable crockery. To overcome this issue, the City of Munich cooperates with the company MobielSpiel e.V. to rent reusable tableware as well as 2 mobile dishwashers at a moderate charge. They are suitable for 200 to 300 persons.
The benefits of using this service are manifold for the organisers:
- reduced costs for one-way crockery
- glass and porcelain look nicer
- no need to hand wash
- reduced costs for waste management
- avoidance of litter on the ground – looks nicer
- protection of the environment since waste is avoided.
This approach contributed to increase the acceptance and respect of the ban.
Yet legislative powers of cities are limited by federal law. Munich City couldn’t ban the use of one-way drink packaging. Therefore it carried out 2 large-scale campaigns, in 1991 and 1992-1993, to promote returnable bottles for beverages. Since 1994, the City has been cooperating with retailers to strengthen the impact of the municipal campaigns. This cooperation led to the organisation of the Multi-Way System Weeks in 1998.
The waste avoidance strategy in Munich resulted in a sharp decrease in waste generation. This success is mainly due to a shift in the flow of materials from disposal towards reuse.
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Lending reusable crockery for free to households
The City of Nuremberg goes one step further in providing a service to encourage the use of reusable crockery: any inhabitants – including private households- can borrow for free plates, glass, knives, etc from the Red Cross. They only have to pay a deposit which they get back when returning the crockery. For larger quantities and open air celebrations, the City of Nuremberg makes available two fully equipped passenger car trailers that allows to transport the crockery and 1 dishwasher with all necessary connection. A beer tent set can also be rented. This service can be contracted at one of the recycling yards of the city.
The use of reusable, returnable packaging and containers is compulsory for all events on public areas or in urban organisations. Since 1992, reusable, pledge-requiring plastic cups are used in all urban outdoor swimming pools, the zoo and the fair centre, as well as in the stadium.
In complement, organisers are to separate their waste. They may be required to submit a waste concept before the event. They have to explain how they will prevent waste and collect separately the one which can not be avoided. The organisers of large-scale events receive the support of the waste advisors in this task.
About waste advisors in Nuremberg, see “Reducing society’s demand for virgin raw materials : waste prevention in companies”
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Happy Baby in Cotton Nappies
Over 10 million disposable nappies end up in Milton-Keynes landfills every year. They represent 6% of household waste in volume. The City Council has decided to address this stream by a promotion campaign for the use of reusable cotton nappies. This campaign was launched in 1999.
Such a product could face strong reluctance, as it is strongly connoted with old days and also with dirtiness. To overcome reluctance, Milton-Keynes City Council has edited a short guide “Keep Baby happy in a cotton nappy!” on its website in the form of “frequently asked questions”:
- explaining the various types of nappies and how to use them;
- demonstrating the financial benefits of reusable nappies: over 2,5 years, one can save about 360 Euros when washing nappies at home;
- promoting the use of private washing services. They collect nappies at home and wash them. Using this service adds up to the costs but doesn’t exceed those of disposable nappies;
- stressing the absence of chemical absorbers and the possibility to have organic cotton nappies.
Parents have the possibility to enjoy free demonstration and testing. From 2002 onwards, pregnant women have the possibility to pre-register with a washing service before going to hospital. When returning home, they can benefit from a reduced price for the service.
Similarly, the City of Munich subsidises the use of reusable diapers and diaper cleaning service.
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