Sorted but stalled: The truth of recycling in green Copenhagen

Copenhagen's preparation for reuse and recycling rate is 50% in 2022; some practical hurdles make the Danish capital’s green image look rosier than the reality.

The EU’s recycling system, including Copenhagen, is far from effective—especially when it comes to textiles and plastics. 

This is according to a waste reduction expert, Sanna Due, working at the European Environment Agency in Copenhagen.

Market Barriers Undermine Efforts

One of the biggest challenges, the expert explains, is that the market for recycled materials does not function properly. 

In many cases, producing new materials is cheaper than recycling used ones.

“Prices for recycled raw materials are often higher than for virgin materials. This means that even though we collect waste for recycling, there isn’t always a buyer willing to use it,” says Sanna Due

Everyday Recycling Struggles

While Copenhagen's green reputation inspires some, daily obstacles frustrate others.

Adam, a university student who lives in a dormitory, estimates that only about 50% of his household waste gets properly sorted. 

Easy-to-sort items like plastics and cardboard are routinely separated, he says, but pants, glass, and metal often end up in general waste. 

“The hardest part is mixed materials,” Adam explains. “When something combines plastic and metal, it's confusing which bin to use—and sometimes they're impossible to tear apart, so it just goes in the general waste.”

Tourist Joy Lu from China admits she had no recycling routine back home, but Copenhagen's systems caught her attention. 

Still, she found the street bins lacking compared to other Nordic countries. 

“Not the best compared to Sweden or Finland, where more categories are available on the street,” Lu says.

Electronic Waste on the Rise

Due to flags rising e-waste as another threat, driven by hard-to-repair designs. 

The volume of electrical and electronic waste is expected to increase significantly in the coming years. 

Consumer habits and business models play a major role in this development.

“Many products are designed to be difficult to repair. Batteries cannot be replaced, and software updates push consumers to buy new devices,” Sanna Due says, referring to the issue of planned obsolescence.

Instead, companies should focus more on repair and upgrading rather than replacement. 

Mobile phones are one example, where consumers are often offered a new model instead of having their existing phone repaired.

Accessibility and Trust Are Key

To boost the recycling rates in Copenhagen, the expert stresses that convenience for citizens is crucial.

“People need to know what to do with their waste, and it has to be easy to dispose of it correctly. You shouldn’t have to rely on driving to a recycling station,” Sanna Due says.

Trust in the system is equally important. If citizens see that sorted waste is later mixed together and incinerated, it undermines motivation to recycle.

On a broader level, the expert calls for political targets that focus not only on recycling rates but on overall resource consumption.

“The most important issue is not how much we recycle, but how many resources we use. Europe currently consumes about seven times more resources than the planet can sustain,” Sanna Due concludes.

According to the expert, a real transition requires a combination of public education, better systems, and much stricter political frameworks for consumption and production.

As Europe faces rising electronic waste and persistent challenges with textiles and plastics, cities and citizens alike must rethink how we consume, reuse, and recycle to stay within planetary limits.

This story is for an audience in the U.S. and could be published on https://www.cbsnews.com/