'Zero Waste' brings over $3B to Turkish economy

The Zero Waste project, launched in 2017 under the auspices of First Lady Emine Erdogan, brought 17 billion Turkish liras ($3.08 billion) to the Turkish economy from June 2017 to the end of 2020.

The project aims to contain waste under sustainable development principles, leaving a clean and developed Turkey and a livable world to future generations, according to information compiled by Anadolu Agency.

The average USD/TRY exchange rate was 5.55 during the period.

During the same period, 315 million kilowatt-hour energy, 345 million cubic meters of water, 50 million barrels of oil, 397 million tons of raw materials, and 209 million trees were saved.

The project also prevented 2 billion tons of greenhouse gas emission.

The amount of waste is expected to reach 2.2 billion tons globally in 2025, from 1.3 billion tons currently, according to a World Bank report, while this figure is forecasted to reach 38 million tons in 2023.

In Turkey, 52% of all domestic waste is organic, 10% is paper, 6% is plastic, 4% is glass, and 2% is metal, so a significant amount of waste can be recycled.

The project is planned to be extended to public places such as train stations, ports, schools, malls, and hospitals.

As part of the project, the recovery rate is targeted to reach 35% in 2023, which is 19% currently.

The project also aims to employ 100,000 people directly and generate 20 billion-Turkish-lira ($2.7-billion) saving as of 2023.

While 76,000 buildings currently have zero waste management system, this figure is expected to reach 400,000 buildings in 2023.

Also, 100,000 liters of oil is saved per 1 ton of recycled glass, and 17 trees will be saved per 1 ton of recycled paper.

*Writing and contributions by Gokhan Ergocun in Istanbul