In my free time I take immeasurable pleasure in learning about german waste disposal. I would like to consult you on this little quirk which would serve to deepen my understanding of the art of abfalls:

why is it that i can throw CD cases into the wertstofftonne, but actual CDs needs to go to the wertstoffhof? furthermore, if i take a CD case to the wertstoffhof instead of throwing it into the wertstofftonne, does it end up in a different stream of processing?

i would preferably like to hear from waste management professionals regarding this topic (if it helps, im near munich)

by sfw_throwaway_7

3 comments

  1. CDs require special treatment for polycarbonate recycling. This can be achived only in large amounts.

    The Wertstofftonne (also the Gelber Sack) is for packaging materials ~~with a ‘Grüner Punkt’ logo~~ only. For 1-3 CDs Wertstofftonne is surely no big problem.

    EDIT: correction ‘grüner Punkt’, thanks to the commentators for your input!

  2. Well the coating on CD’s is the point. Nobody will care if you throw a broken CD in the “gelber Sack”…. but “the law” sees it as special garbage… the case is purly plastic

  3. At the Wertstoffhof CDs are collected in a special bin for CDs/DVDs because they need a special form of recycling/processing and it is much easier if they are “sortenrein” (clean of other contaminants).

    Similarly, our Wertstoffhof collects “real” cork from wine bottles in a special container, but the plastic ones go into the general waste.

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