By Aynur Ekiz
ANKARA (AA) - Turkish Parliament's waste recovery initiatives successfully averted 17 tons of greenhouse gas emissions while conserving 4 billion tons of water and saving 530,000 kilowatt-hours of energy last year.
In 2017, under the auspices of the first lady Emine Erdogan, Türkiye launched a Zero Waste project to highlight the importance of eliminating waste in fighting the climate crisis.
Parliament staff receiving training on Zero Waste management and these efforts have come to light in data from the parliament's General Secretariat.
This data reveals that the parliament recycled 105 tons of paper, 2 tons of plastic, 3 tons of glass, 1,000 kilograms of metal, 600 kilograms of organic waste, 4,250 liters of vegetable oil waste and 1,500 liters of waste motor oil last year.
The cutting of 1,768 trees was prevented last year, by recycling 105 tons of paper, the data shows. Through recycling 2 tons of plastic, 33 barrels of oil were saved.
The recycling of 3 tons of glass in Parliament saw the conservation of 3.6 tons of raw materials, while the recycling of 1,000 kilograms of metal resulted in the preservation of 1.3 tons of raw materials.
By recycling 1,500 liters of waste engine oil, 1,093 liters of mineral oil were recovered.
A total of 600 kilograms of organic waste was converted into 120 kilograms of compost for use as a soil improver in gardens and potted plants.
By recycling 4,250 liters of waste vegetable oil, 4,040 liters of biodiesel were produced.
In 2022, the UN General Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution on the zero-waste initiative presented by Türkiye, declaring March 30 as International Day of Zero Waste.
*Writing by Handan Kazanci