Die REMONDIS-Welt der Nachhaltigkeit
REMONDIS' World of Sustainability
De REMONDIS-wereld van de duurzaamheid
The whole notion of sustainability will be a lost cause unless we take action here and now to conserve our planet's natural resources. Future generations and today's developing countries will only be able to enjoy prosperous lives if steps are taken right now to counteract the growing shortages of raw materials. For us – being one of the world's leading recycling, service and water companies – there can be only one goal: to tackle this problem and lead by example. Why not join us on this path?!
Everyone agrees that global warming must be limited to 2°C – or preferably 1.5°C – if we wish to prevent our ecosystem from being irreparably damaged. Large areas of woodland in Germany are dying as the country suffers ever longer periods of drought. Pussyfooting around is not going to stop climate change. Some major action needs to be taken. And not just switching from fossil fuels to renewables but from virgin to recycled raw materials as well. We are showing how this can be done.
The Lippe Plant in Lünen is not only a high tech site, it is also an important project for combatting global warming. The various activities carried out at the site help to cut carbon emissions by 488,000t every single year. For a forest to have the same effect, it would need to contain 37 million trees. Certainly a lovely place to take a walk in but perhaps not an ideal place for creating 1,400 jobs.
People searching for an argument in favour of plastics recycling need look no further than at our seas and oceans. Vast areas of waste are floating around in them and are so big that they can even be seen from space. This problem, however, can only be solved on Earth – with more responsible consumer behaviour and systematic plastics recycling.
Talking the talk but not walking the walk? Not at REMONDIS. It goes without saying that our all-encompassing view of sustainability also includes us being sustainable ourselves. This covers all aspects of our business – from the energy efficiency levels of our head office buildings, all the way through to ensuring that all our locations adhere to our high social standards, no matter where in the world they may be.
Every company tries to make a profit. And things are no different at REMONDIS either. For us, however, money is always a means to a good end – which is why a large part of the profits we make is invested in developing new and innovative recycling processes and technologies. Helping to preserve our planet’s valuable natural resources.
Sustainability is not a state or a condition but an ongoing process. First and foremost, sustainability is team work. Which is why we cooperate closely with experts and research institutes that also feel strongly about conserving our planet’s natural resources and preventing climate change. Such work always leads to new approaches and innovations.
Wherever we see an opportunity to drive forward the notion of sustainability and to fix it even more firmly in the minds of people, then we are there, full of passion and enthusiasm for the cause. This covers a whole range of activities – from educational projects, to acting as advisers, to supporting universities.
Everyone is talking about the scarcity of raw materials and about sustainability. But what exactly is behind it all? We decided to do some research to find out what it’s all about – so that we could put together some pages with the most important background information for you to read.
The European Green Deal was officially launched by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, in January 2020. Its goal: for the whole of the European continent to be climate neutral by 2050. With the circular economy included in the Green Deal, we most certainly welcome the fact that the efforts of this sector are finally being acknowledged and appreciated. At the end of the day, our industry in general – and REMONDIS in particular – have been spearheading resource conservation and climate action. No other sector has done more. Our innovations and technologies are also effective as they have a positive impact on all of the areas that are relevant for the Green Deal to be a success. Starting with the development of closed loop concepts for the mobility sector, to solutions for generating renewable energy, all the way through to producing recycled raw materials for industrial and construction firms.
To find out more about the Green Deal, go to the EU Commission’s website
The objectives of the European Green Deal
Our normal everyday operations are, in fact, the Green Deal in practice. Every year, REMONDIS’ Lippe Plant – Europe’s largest industrial recycling centre – alone cuts carbon emissions by almost half a million tonnes. Both our production of renewable energies and our efficient thermal treatment of non-recyclable residual materials also make a huge contribution towards tackling climate change.
But, having said all that, there’s still plenty more to do. Every day, we work on developing new technologies and processes to recover an ever greater volume of materials so they can be returned to production cycles. Every single gram of recycled material helps to reduce the carbon emissions generated by companies mining and processing our planet’s natural resources. Not to mention the positive impact they have on protecting the environment and conserving resources.
The circular economy has the fourth-largest CO2-cutting potential following the energy industry, mobility and the construction sector. It is even higher than agriculture
"The European Green Deal is our new growth strategy. (…) [it] is on the one hand about cutting emissions, but on the other hand it is about creating jobs and boosting innovation. (...) this is Europe's ‘man on the moon’ moment."
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the EU Commission
Recovering and conserving natural resources is one aspect. What is also important is making sure that the very most is made of recycled raw materials. At present, just 15% of all materials used in industrial production processes in Germany are recyclates. Were this figure to rise to just 30%, then an additional 60 million tonnes of CO2 would be saved. That is one-third of what would be achieved if the country switched completely to renewable sources of energy. With this potential in mind, therefore, it is only logical that industrial businesses across the EU should be obliged by law to have a minimum recycled content in their products. One precondition here, of course, is that there are sufficient volumes of recycled raw materials available. In other words: we need higher collection rates so that the circular economy has enough input material to produce the recycled raw materials needed. But that is what the Green Deal and climate action are like. Everything is interconnected and dependent on each other.
Besides calling for the mandatory use of recycled raw materials and for higher collection rates, we are also campaigning for a new and better Ecodesign Directive.. The keyword here: raw material efficiency.
All those people who genuinely want the Green Deal to be a success are going to have to look at it from every possible angle. The subject of landfilling is key here. Landfills used for storing materials that have organic residue adhering to them emit huge volumes of methane as the substances decompose. Methane is 25 times more damaging than CO2 making it the greenhouse gas that is the most dangerous for our climate. Which is why a ban on landfilling organic waste would have such a huge impact. A landfill ban was, for example, implemented in Germany in 2005. This one measure alone cut carbon emissions in the German waste management sector by two thirds. It is obvious, therefore, why REMONDIS is actively campaigning for this law – called ‘TaSi’ – to be adopted across the whole of the EU. It would have a major influence on ensuring the objectives of the Green Deal were met. A European landfill ban would be the second most powerful individual GHG-cutting measure, second only to switching to renewable energy. So, what are we waiting for?
The Green Deal is an important step towards setting up a climate-neutral economy on the European Continent. Should it be a success, it will create significant competitive advantages over non-climate-neutral international competitors and play an important role in combating climate change
Being one of the world’s leading recycling, service and water businesses with over 30,000 employees, everything we do revolves around sustainability. We ensure that the environment is protected and that natural resources are conserved in over 30 countries across four continents.
Our company
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