We are not only successful in sorting plastics. Due to sorting and recycling other materials such as glass, paper and beverage cartons, the inhabitants of the Czech Republic managed to decrease the production of greenhouse gases by 954,579 tons of CO2 equivalent in 2010, to save energy that is used by 260,000 households on average per year, and to further save the amount of CO2 produced by 10% of the cars in our country per year. These are the results of an expert study carried out by the non-profit company EKO-KOM that specialises in sorting and recycling packaging waste material.
There are more than 200,000 colourful containers for sorted household waste all over the country. The yellow ones are for plastics, blue for paper, green for glass bottles and orange containers used for beverage cartons. The statistical data prove that seven out of ten Czechs throw sorted waste into these containers. In 2010 alone, people threw 380 tons of paper into the blue containers. Every ton saves 14 trees, so in total, in 2010 the Czechs saved 5.3 million trees from being cut down. According to the data from the Eurostat, the Czechs managed to move ahead of the Germans in sorting waste, winning the imaginary first place in Europe as the most active protectors of nature in the field of sorting and recycling waste.
As for packaging materials, the materials recycled most often in the Czech Republic include plastics and paper, which is followed by glass, metals and cartons. At present, more than two thirds of the population of the Czech Republic actively sort waste.
A series of conferences called the "Days of Waste" are organised within the popularisation of sorting and recycling packaging materials in the Czech Republic, supported by the company EKO-KOM, the Ministry of the Environment of the CR, the Union of Towns and Municipalities of the CR and the Association of Regions of the CR. The mission of the project is to provide as much information as possible for the planning, organisation and operation of waste management for municipalities, cities, regions and other sources. The topics of particular conferences are focused on current issues, especially on the creation of integrated regional systems for processing waste.