An economy that is to a greater extent circular and in which the value of products, materials and resources is kept for as long as possible in the economy, and the generation of waste is reduced to a minimum, is an important contribution to the development of a sustainable and competitive economy.
The increasing global demand for goods and the depletion of resources, together with the current uneconomic production and consumption systems in the economy, are increasing the costs of basic raw materials, minerals and energy, creating more pollution as well as more waste. The need for food and raw materials grows day by day as the population grows, and the limitation of clean production reduces the quality and quantity of products – Everything in the environment is made from some raw material, grown or mined. Some raw materials renew faster, some more slowly, and there are more and more of those whose quantity is limited. Projections say that by 2050, due to the increase in the number of inhabitants worldwide, fifteen times more production will be needed just to meet basic needs. Raw materials are needed for production, and constant and increased consumption leaves little room for resource renewal. If the reckless burden on the environment continues, it is estimated that the destruction of bio-diversity will be equal to a global loss of 7% GDP by 2050. It is also estimated that, out of 36 million jobs, every sixth job (in the European Union) is directly or indirectly connected to the industry of environmental protection. According to a report form the European Commission, investing in energy efficiency will enable the creation of one million jobs while reducing energy consumption by 20%. Eco-industry in the European Union is growing at a rate of 8% per year and employs 3.4 million people.
Nature provides a free lunch, but only if we control our appetites. - William Ruckelshaus
Man affects the environment with all his activities: the use of space, resources, meeting personal, social and economic needs. Waste is a direct consequence of the totality of activities in the society, and the amount and type of generated waste is often an indicator of economic strength and development of a particular society. It is created as a consequence of all human activities and in all economic activities, and when discarded represents the loss of materials and energy. Solving the problem of waste at its origin is crucial for a successful implementation of a circular economy. Due to the uneven distribution of the population and the specific appearance of Croatia, there are certain problems in organizing an effective system throughout the whole territory. The City of Zagreb and the Zagreb County account for 6,6% of the territory and account for close to 25% of the total population. The total urbanized area of cities and towns in Croatia is growing regardless of the population movements and the economic development. While the total number of inhabitants has grew by only 13,5% in the last 40 years, the area occupied by settlements grew much faster. Responsible waste management means preventing and reducing the waste generation and its harmful impact on the environment. Since it is time to collect and neutralize (deposit and incineration) waste it is time for a circular economy. Economic and material use reduces costs for the creation of new products, saves energy, reduces emissions into the environment, develops the economy and creates new jobs.
Significant developments in the circular economy of Croatia, in terms of proper handling of packaging waste, arose due to the introduction of a state body – the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund. Only in the centres of Unija Nova have, in the period from 2009 to 2016, close to 80 million Al/Fe, 550 million PET and 700 million glass packaging units been processed. The return rate of glass packaging waste in 2005 was only 19%, and already the following year, with the introduction of the monitoring and collection system, the rate rose to an enviable 58,5%, while today it is around 47%.
For the circular economy to be successful, it is necessary to systematically take over unnecessary materials and goods precisely by specialized companies that know how to properly handle such goods. A major influence on the circular economy in urban areas is made by the main gathering places of citizens. Therefore, the concept of reverse logistics has been developed so that materials unsuitable for further sale or consumption could be shipped to facilities for processing and preparation for the reuse or waste recovery. Inadeaquate management of returns and written-off goods can significantly affect the overall business results and the image of the company. Research shows that approximately 86% of the total amount of waste in Croatia is mixed municipal waste, with a large share of bio-waste and the place of origin at legal entities and ends up in landfills, which is the reason for the stagnation of the development of the circular economy. The other 14% of waste is evenly distributed among bulk, packaging and biodegradable and other fractions of waste. Precisely the waste that was previously characterized as mixed municipal waste with the place of origin in hotels, restaurants, ready-made food centres, is the subject of selective waste management by various legal entities, which has been successfully managed by Unija Nova since 2012, with tendencies of great growth and recognition of multiple benefits by clients. Clients have recognized the advantages of hiring a specialized company for dealing with the returned goods through: reduction of theft and fraud, improvement of productivity and acceleration of processes, reduction of inefficient management of write-offs, reduction of mistakes and non-compliance of documentation, improvement of inventory management, compliance with legal regulations for all categories of waste and former food, and the reduction of the need for additional labour and payments of overtime. In the past five years, approximately 33,000 tons of non-compliant goods, 9,000 tons of bio-waste, and 13,000 tons of food of animal origin have been saved from landfills through the system of specialized shipment, and the method of separating mixed waste into individual types of waste, and then handling it over to authorized recyclers. Over the past ten years, through systematic development and thanks to the trust of its clients, who have recognized the competence and fairness in business, the company has grown four times in the number of employees and the number of specialized means of transport, and with its own funds, it has opened five specialized centres for return logistics, which enabled systematic takeover on the territory of whole Croatia, including the islands.
The results so far, measurable in numbers, clearly show the justification of such systematic waste management, which is currently able to achieve a rate of classification of mixed waste up to 94% into individual types of waste, with the remaining 6% being waste material suitable for energy recovery in power plants. The results above clearly indicate the need to organize a waste management system, including specialized companies with innovative solutions that follow the development of the material and waste market, as an alternative to the current way of managing mixed municipal waste.