Portuguese worst at recycling, study shows
By Honor Mahony
The Portuguese recycle the smallest percentage of their rubbish, according to the results of a survey by the British Institute for Public Policy Research.
The survey - which only covers the 15 member states before EU enlargement mainly to the east in 2004 - shows that Portuguese recycle three percent of their rubbish.
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Other recycling laggards are the Greeks at eight percent and Britons at 18 percent.
At the other end of the scale, the Dutch recycle 65 percent of their waste, followed by the Austrians at 59 percent and the Germans at 58 percent.
The report's authors note that in countries like Germany where some local areas charge per kilo of waste not recycled, regional collection of recyclable materials goes up to more than 65 per cent.
The Irish, who rank around the middle in terms of how much they recycle (31 percent) produce the most rubbish per head - clocking in 869 kg per person each year.
Their nearest waste-producing rivals are the Danes at 696 kg per head.
The Greeks produce less than half of the rubbish produced by the Irish with 433 kg per capita.
The full report is to be published in autumn and is based on figures from 2003/2004.
