Bio-waste was supposed to be a source of ecological fertilizer and clean energy, and its processing was supposed to be a remedy for the growing minimum levels of recycling municipal waste. However, the reality turned out to be far from expectations - the bio-waste collection system is not fully effective, and the potential of this fraction is usually wasted in landfills.

Currently, in Poland and across the EU , we process only a small percentage of the bio-waste we produce . This applies to both industrial and municipal waste. The Zero Waste and Bio-based Industries Consortium (BIC) report Bio-waste generation in the EU: Current capture levels and future potential estimates that each Pole can potentially generate 247 kg of bio-waste . This sum consists of:

• 112 kg of food waste,
• 135 kg of green waste.

Theoretical potential calculations were made based on a collection of public reports and national data.

However, according to the data provided by the Central Statistical Office, only 52 kg of bio-waste is selectively collected . Where does this difference come from? It most likely results from incorrect segregation of bio-waste - instead of the organic fraction, it ends up in mixed waste.

According to the calculations of the report's authors, in Poland only the following are selectively collected:

• 9% food waste,
• 20% of all bio-waste (food + green waste).

The average for EU countries is 24.9% for food waste and 30% for the entire bio-waste fraction.

As the authors of the report conclude:

The implementation of food waste collection strategies and practices will be one of the main factors increasing the overall recycling rate of bio-waste in the near future.

The aforementioned report by Zero Waste and the Bio-based Industries Consortium (BIC) indicates that as much as 75% of food waste generated in the EU remains unmanaged . This results in the loss of valuable resources that could be processed into natural fertiliser and alternative fuel, as well as excessive methane emissions that occur in landfills. In order to combat waste , Polish entrepreneurs operating in the catering industry and beyond are required to conclude an agreement for the collection and management of food waste they produce . This agreement can be concluded with a municipal company or with a specialised waste collection company, such as Interzero.

Cooperation with Interzero in the field of food waste collection from companies and institutions is a guarantee of its proper management. The catering waste we collect is transferred to specialized processing plants - composting plants and biogas plants, where it is subjected to composting and fermentation processes. Professional collection of food waste is one of the best ways to implement the idea of a closed-loop economy and to avoid legal consequences associated with improper management of bio-waste.

Food waste generated in companies can also be managed at source where it is produced. For this purpose, Interzero offers a range of electric composters for industrial use . They enable waste volume to be reduced by up to 90% and transformed into an excellent, nutrient-rich substrate (pre-compost) that can be used as a soil improver, biomass fuel or anaerobic fermentation raw material. The entire process takes just 24 hours and, thanks to the deodorisation system, is free from unpleasant odours .

The Oklin composter range also includes a device for home use. The Oklin GG-02 compact electric composter can be placed in the kitchen or pantry, providing a more convenient and faster alternative to composting kitchen waste in traditional composters.

Bio-waste generated in households that is not managed at source must be selectively collected and then taken away by municipalities. However, the current collection systems are not perfect. In order to make it easier for municipalities to carry out tasks related to the effective collection and subsequent management of bio-waste, IOŚ-PIB has developed a Catalog of Good Practices in the Collection of Bio-Waste , which presents examples of efficient systems for managing biodegradable waste in Poland and Europe.

According to the report of the European Environment Agency, bio-waste constitutes approx. 34% of the stream of all municipal waste produced in the European Union. In Poland, this percentage was 37.4% in 2023. Considering the fact that from 2025 municipalities will have to achieve the 55% level of municipal waste recycling required by EU regulations, it will be necessary to focus on recycling bio-waste as the largest fraction . Is it possible? We talked about the problems and challenges of bio-waste management with Jan Kolbusz, Chief Technologist and President of Mikrobiotech in the Eko Bez Kantów podcast Clean Energy and Fertile Soil: How to Unlock the Potential of Bio-Waste?

Sources:

1. https://biconsortium.eu/publication/bio-waste-generation-eu-current-capture-levels-and-future-potential-0
2. https://stat.gov.pl/obszary-tematyczne/srodowisko-energia/srodowisko/ochrona-srodowiska-2024,1,25.html
3. https://magazynbiomasa.pl/bioodpady-komunalne-jaki-to-potencjal-sprawdz-koniecznie/

The beginning of the year also marks the beginning of the reporting period, in which entrepreneurs registered with BDO and keeping waste records must submit reports for 2024. Below we have collected the most important information and answers to the most frequently asked questions about BDO waste reports.

The annual report on waste generation and waste management must be submitted by 15 March for the previous calendar year. However, the deadline for submitting BDO reports for 2024 is 17 March 2025. Why March 17 and not March 15? In 2025 March 15 falls on a Saturday, therefore, by operation of law, the deadline for submitting the BDO report is postponed to the next business day, i.e. Monday, March 17.

This of course applies to entrepreneurs who continue to operate. Entrepreneurs who close their company are required to submit a report within 7 days of closing their business.

The annual BDO report, technically known as the annual report on waste generation and waste management, for 2024 is required to be submitted by all entities that :

• in 2024 they were subject to the obligation to keep waste records in the BDO (produced or managed waste),
• in 2024, as part of their activities, extracted waste from a landfill or waste dump on the basis of a consent to extract waste or a decision approving the instructions for running a waste landfill in the post-operational phase.

We would like to remind you that the obligation to submit an annual report also applies to entities keeping simplified waste records in BDO!

Don't have a BDO number? Check if you are obliged to register with BDO!

Entities that did not produce or process waste in 2024 are not required to submit a zero report .

An annual report on waste produced and waste management should be submitted to the voivodeship marshal appropriate for the place of production, collection or processing of waste . If you produce, process or collect waste in several voivodeships, you are obliged to submit reports to the voivodeship marshals in all voivodeships where you conduct this activity.

The report can be completed and submitted exclusively electronically , through an individual account in the BDO system. Each entrepreneur can do it on their own or entrust their duty to Interzero experts, gaining a guarantee of efficient, reliable and timely preparation and then submission of reports. Contact us and receive the best offer for taking over the BDO reporting obligation!

Depending on the areas of activity of a given entity, the annual report on waste generation and waste management for 2024 may contain information on :

• mass and types of waste ,
• method of waste management (applies only to waste management entities),
• installations and devices used to process this waste, including technical data of machines and information on the functioning of installations and devices: number of working hours per day, dates and duration of failures or downtimes (applies only to entities processing waste),
• the amount of sulphates or chlorides in waste per Mg of titanium dioxide produced (applies to entities possessing or processing waste from titanium dioxide production processes),
• mass and types of food waste generated.

As a rule, yes. If you have not submitted a BDO report on time, you should do so immediately , without waiting for a possible inspection or summons from the office. Thanks to this, you have a chance to avoid a severe financial penalty. Interzero experts will help you settle all reporting arrears. Contact us and present your situation, and we will help you identify all outstanding obligations and complete the necessary formalities.

Remember that your company's reporting obligations expire after 5 years! This means that the office may call you to submit a report for up to 5 years back, and additionally impose a fine of up to PLN 5,000 on your company.

Raw material recycling involves thermal decomposition of waste, which can yield liquid hydrocarbons or gases that are components for the production of new raw materials. It is used to process some plastics (e.g. PET, polyethylene, polypropylene). This type of recycling is more energy-intensive and more expensive than material recycling , shoe it allows for the return to circulation of waste that is heavily contaminated or heterogeneous (and therefore unsuitable for material recycling).

According to experts, chemical recycling should be a complement to mechanical recycling, which is currently used to process approximately 80% of plastics. Managing Director of the Plastics Europe Polska Foundation, Dr. Anna Kozera-Szałkowska, sees it as an opportunity to recycle raw materials that can be used for contact with food or in medical applications [i] .

[i] Zero recycling point in Poland , https://portalkomunalny.pl/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/raport-punkt-zero-recyklingu-w-polsce.pdf

In the chemical recycling process, two basic reactions are used: breaking and creating new chemical bonds. This means that a plastic particle (polymer) is broken into smaller particles (including monomers), from which new polymers can be produced in the next stage . In this way, materials with identical properties to primary materials obtained from crude oil are obtained.

The most important technologies used during the chemical recycling process are:

• pyrolysis - thermal decomposition occurring without access to oxygen. As a result, pyrolysis oil is produced, from which, after purification and specialist processing, ethylene and propylene can be obtained, i.e. monomers that are the basic raw materials for the production of polyethylene and polypropylene,
• gasification - thermal decomposition occurring in the presence of oxygen. Almost all plastics can be processed in this process,
• solvolysis - an exchange reaction between polymer and solvent molecules. It is mainly used for processing PET.

Pyrolysis and gasification, however, do not fall within the statutory definition of recycling - the materials obtained in these processes are sometimes used as fuel. Therefore, energy is "only" recovered, which cannot be considered recycling. Nevertheless, pyrolysis is a promising method that can produce polymers with properties identical to those of the original polymers.

Chemical recycling is not currently used on a large scale . The Plastics Europe publication [i] indicates that in 2023, only 0.12 million tonnes of plastics will be produced in Europe in this process. However, many experts believe that this method should, and even must, be popularised , especially in the context of the constant pursuit of increasing plastic recycling levels. As emphasized by Dr. Eng. Anna Kozera-Szałkowska, the sanctioning of chemical recycling technology is also necessary due to the upcoming legal regulations regarding the increase in the content of recyclates in consumer packaging. [ii]..

At Interzero, we understand these needs perfectly and have long been taking action to increase the scale of chemical recycling and at the same time reduce the mass of raw materials going to thermal recycling, i.e. waste incinerators. For this purpose, we have developed a special process for sorting mixed plastics, which until now were sent to incineration. In our method, waste is not sorted into monomaterials, but into streams precisely adapted to the requirements of chemical recycling.

In 2023, together with OMV, we started building the largest plastic waste sorting plant , which will then be sent to chemical recycling. The new Interzero and OMV investment, which will be put into operation as early as 2026, will have a processing capacity of up to 260,000 mixed plastics per year.

Discover all Interzero's chemical recycling initiatives.

[i] Plastics Europe, Plastics - Facts 2024 in a nutshell , https://plasticseurope.org/pl/knowledge-hub/tworzywa-fakty-w-pigulce-2024/

[ii]. Zero recycling point in Poland , https://portalkomunalny.pl/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/raport-punkt-zero-recyklingu-w-polsce.pdf

From October 2025, a deposit system for selected beverage packaging will start operating in Poland. This is a response to the challenges related to littering public spaces and meeting EU requirements related to the level of collection of this waste. The new mechanism, included in the Packaging Management Act, is to cover plastic bottles up to 3 litres, aluminium cans up to 1 liter and reusable glass bottles up to 1.5 litres. The system, which aims to simplify segregation and reduce the amount of waste, will be based on a deposit - a fee that we will receive back after returning, for example, an aluminium can at an appropriate point.

In many European Union countries , deposit systems have been operating successfully for years . For example, in Germany, the packaging return rate exceeds 98%, which shows how effective this form of selective collection and recycling of packaging can be. Key success factors include clear rules, the availability of return points (including machines) and an appropriately high deposit rate.

The deposit system is not only a way to a cleaner environment, but also a possibility of better use of secondary raw materials. In times when the Single Use Plastic directive forces changes in the packaging economy, such solutions are necessary.

The second part of the report "In the traps of disposableness - waiting for a deposit". contains detailed analyses, data and recommendations. If you are interested in how the deposit system will affect our daily lives, or you want to check how you compare to the answers, be sure to read the whole thing on our website. Prepare for change and become part of the solution, not the problem!

On January 1, 2025, an amendment to the regulation of the Minister of Climate and Environment came into force, which significantly reduced the product fee rates for glass packaging collected under the deposit system. According to the new regulations, for each kilogram of reusable glass bottles, those introducing them will pay :

• PLN 0.01 (instead of PLN 0.10) in 2025,
• PLN 0.05 (instead of PLN 1) in 2026,
• PLN 0.25 (instead of PLN 5) in 2027 and subsequent years.

Let us recall that the previous regulations provided for uniform rates for all types of packaging covered by the deposit system. So what is the reason for this change?

The amendment to the regulation was intended to make the product fee rates more realistic . As emphasized in the justification for the draft of the new regulation, the weight of a glass bottle is many times higher than the weight of a PET bottle or a can of identical capacity. Based on the data cited by the Ministry of Climate and Environment, the weights of half-liter packages covered by the deposit system are as follows:

• PET bottle - 13 g,
• drinks can - 14 g,
• glass bottle - 315 g.

This means that per 1 kilogram of packaging there are:

• 77 PET bottles,
• 71 cans,
• only 3 glass bottles.

In line with the principle that it is the number of packages that litters, not their weight , the product fee rates for glass packaging have been significantly reduced.

Discover Interzero's comprehensive services for deposit system participants >>

The reduction of the product fee for glass packaging was dictated not only by economic issues, but also by ecological ones. The use of reusable packaging has a positive impact on the environment and brings us closer to the realisation of the idea of circular economy . The use of returnable glass bottles reduces the scale of production of new bottles, and thus reduces carbon dioxide emissions, electricity consumption and raw materials .

Maintaining the current, uniform product fee rates for all these types of packaging could cause those introducing them to abandon their use and replace "expensive" reusable glass with much "cheaper" single-use plastics. Giving up reusable glass bottles would be a step backwards, moving us further away from the transition to a circular economy.

See also:

• 9 months delay in the deposit system. What does this mean for the packaging industry?
• Sielaff Bottle Machines - the best machines for the deposit system

Sources:

• Regulation of the Minister of Climate and Environment of 24 December 2024 amending the regulation on product fee rates for individual types of packaging, https://isap.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/download.xsp/WDU20240001960/O/D20241960.pdf.
• https://legislacja.rcl.gov.pl/projekt/12389300/katalog/13079739#13079739

According to the provisions of the amendment, from 1 January 2025, each commune is obliged to organise selective collection of textile waste , which includes, among others, used clothing and footwear, home textiles (bedding, curtains) and other fabric products. The minimum that local governments must ensure is the possibility of returning all textile waste to the local PSZOK .

Currently, there are no plans to introduce an additional, sixth container exclusively for textile waste or to oblige municipalities to collect this fraction of waste from properties. However, municipalities have the freedom to organise additional methods of collecting textile waste e.g. collecting it directly from households or creating additional collection points. Częstochowa has recently been testing a similar solution, which allows its residents to return textile waste free of charge after prior telephone appointment.

The introduction of the obligation to selectively collect textile waste results from the transposition into Polish law of the provisions of Directive 2008/98/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 November 2008 on waste and repealing certain Directives. Article 11 paragraph 1 of the Directive obliges all EU Member States to conduct selective collection of at least the following fractions: paper, metal, plastics, glass and textiles. This last fraction is mandatory collected throughout the EU from 1 January 2025.

Let us recall that the European Union is still working on implementing legislation to increase the effectiveness of textile waste collection and impose additional obligations on textile producers, known as the extended producer responsibility system. Under the provisions of the EPR, those introducing textiles are to be charged with the costs related to the collection, segregation and recycling of waste generated from them.

Selective collection of textile waste means new obligations not only for municipalities, but also for their residents. From the new year , it is forbidden to throw textiles into the mixed waste bin . Fines for failure to comply with the new rules or for incorrect waste sorting can range from 200 to 400% of the basic waste collection fee. It should be emphasised that these penalties are not one-off - if residents of the property continue to fail to comply with the statutory obligations, financial penalties may also be charged in the following months.

The mechanism for calculating such punitive fees is already well known to us - similar consequences will also be faced by us for incorrect sorting of other waste fractions for which there is an obligation to selectively collect (glass, metal and plastics, paper, bio-waste). Why are we reminding you of this? Well, the study we conducted in 2023 showed that only 62% of Poles segregate waste into all the required fractions, and even fewer, 43%, declare that they can do it correctly. You will find more conclusions in the report from the research We are getting into trouble .

Contrary to appearances, since January we are not obliged to return all used textiles to PSZOK. Used textiles in good condition can be donated to charities (e.g. PCK, Caritas, single mothers' homes, homeless shelters) or thrown into a used clothing container .

Textile manufacturers also offer alternative collection points for textiles , giving consumers the opportunity to return old clothes or shoes to their stores. In most cases, these can be products of any brand, which will then be recycled, upcycled or reintroduced to second-hand stores.

As representatives of the waste and recycling industry, we strongly encourage you to act in the spirit of our idea Together for a World Without Waste, which involves not only proper handling of textile waste, but also preventing its generation. How to do it? Discover 5 ways for ecological fashion and a sustainable wardrobe .