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Dear Readers!
There have been waste management laws in Germany for over 40 years now. At least once a decade, politicians have made some groundbreaking decisions. The “Deponieverordnung” (Landfill Ordinance), the separate kerbside collection system for waste packaging and the “TaSi”, which bans certain materials being taken to landfill and has been acting as a role model for many countries, are all examples of how they have succeeded in systematically moving the country’s waste management sector away from landfills towards more recycling. These courageous decisions, which more often than not involve large investments, have primarily been implemented by private sector businesses but also by municipal waste management companies. We have reached that crossroads again. Germany has to decide which direction it wishes to move in and just how sustainable it wishes to become. The country’s upper house, the Bundesrat, has instructed the Government to submit a draft bill for a new recyclables law by the end of the year, presenting a unique opportunity for them to catapult German recycling activities into a completely new dimension. It is a well-known fact that waste is a source of raw materials. According to a recent INFA study, a further 95kg of recyclable materials could be collected per person per year. The signals coming from the Ministry of the Environment, however, are not particularly encouraging. Here, they are obviously thinking of limiting this new law to waste packaging and wastes made of similar materials. When recycling bins were first introduced in Germany, they were used exclusively for collecting old sales packaging. The decision to allow them to also be used for waste made of similar materials was made a while ago now and it is estimated that this move would only increase the amount of recyclables collected by an additional 5kg per person per year. At REMONDIS, we believe even this figure to be illusory as our experience from collecting, sorting and recycling the contents of the recycling bins has shown that many people are already throwing wastes made of similar materials to packaging into the bin – an intelligent move even if they are not supposed to do this. If politicians limit the new law to just this area, then it will, for the most part, be completely ineffective. We are, therefore, calling on politicians to act as visionaries and be courageous. Make the most of this unique opportunity and set ambitious collection and recycling rates. This is the only way to ensure Germany has a secure supply of raw materials and that everything possible is done to prevent climate change.
Developing sustainability in the water and recycling sectors is just beginning in Asia. Materials recycling has been neglected in this region for far too long and has hardly been able to keep up with the exponential growth on the continent. Singapore is now looking to do more in this area. One of the latest projects of the country’s National Environmental Agency (NEA) involves a new facility to process slag from waste incineration plants and recover ferrous and non-ferrous metals at the same time. REMEX is the company responsible for building and operating it. Once again, Singapore is forging ahead and acting as a role model for other densely populated regions in Asia.
Back in Germany, REMONDIS continues to extend its successful cooperation work with local authorities. The recently founded AWIGO Logistik GmbH is the company’s latest joint venture – a public private partnership between the administrative district of Osnabrück and REMONDIS’ regional company, REMONDIS Nord.
As always, I hope you enjoy reading about these and the many other topics in this latest issue of REMONDIS aktuell.
Yours
Max Köttgen
Working together for 350,000 local inhabitants
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Once again, REMONDIS has further underlined its position as an attractive business partner for local authorities having entered into a further public private partnership (PPP): a joint venture between the north German district of Osnabrück and REMONDIS’ regional company, REMONDIS Nord, is to start operations on 01 January 2015. Around 350,000 local inhabitants will benefit from this new collaboration.
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Harmonising ecological and economic objectives
At the beginning of July, REMONDIS Region Nord and the district’s company, AWIGO Abfallwirtschaft Landkreis Osnabrück GmbH, founded a public private company which is to be run under the name AWIGO Logistik GmbH. The district authorities own a 51 percent share in the new PPP company and REMONDIS Nord a 49 percent share. The district will be performing all commercial tasks involved in the operational side of the business; REMONDIS will be providing the fleet of vehicles as well as the necessary logistics know-how. Their mutual goal is to unite the district authorities’ regional business knowledge with REMONDIS’ international know-how to create the best possible economic and ecological results. AWIGO Logistik GmbH is to officially start its work in January 2015; the cooperation agreement is due to run until 2030.
Stringent requirements for a successful collaboration
The decision to work with REMONDIS was taken as part of a Europe-wide tender process. The company was clearly able to demonstrate the quality of its work during this process beating the offers submitted by its competitors following two rounds of negotiations last March. Whilst comparing the various proposals, the authorities not only looked at the economic aspects of the bids but also at the level of quality offered, closely examining subjects such as innovation, organisation and quality management. Moreover, the list of criteria also called for those submitting a bid to draw up various concepts to demonstrate how such a strategic partnership could be set up so that it is both reliable and sustainable. This meant, therefore, developing a concept that would not only lead to an effective collaboration but also provide for fair contractual conditions and joint decision-making processes.
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“We have established this PPP company to push forward our goal of further improving customer services and cost effectiveness.”
Christian Niehaves, Managing Director of AWIGO Abfallwirtschaft Landkreis Osnabrück GmbH
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Maximum efficiency thanks to logistics know-how
The tasks of the public private joint venture will be to collect recyclables and residual waste from households and businesses, including organic waste, bulky waste and old paper and cardboard. The services are to be offered across an area covering a good 2,000 square kilometres. Consisting of 34 districts and 31 nature reserves, the administrative district of Osnabrück is well known for its rural communities. With its population spread out across this large area, an intelligent recycling logistics system is needed if top quality services are to be offered and costs kept to a minimum. To provide efficient services, organisational know-how and a modern fleet of vehicles are key.
A cooperation model with tangible benefits
The initial stages of this collaboration have already brought about some positive outcomes: the foundation of AWIGO Logistik GmbH will lead to the creation of up to 50 jobs. The local inhabitants living in the district are to be provided with an excellent overall package with high quality and low cost services. At the same time, the administrative district has access to the REMONDIS Group’s extensive expertise and wide range of plants and facilities.
Whether it be in Bremerhaven, Kiel or Schwerin: REMONDIS Nord is a popular partner for local authorities in north Germany, where it has entered into several different public private partnerships.
“The foundation of AWIGO Logistik underlines once again the importance REMONDIS puts on working closely with local authorities,” commented Wolfgang Steen, managing director of REMONDIS Nord. REMONDIS has already entered into a number of public private partnerships in north Germany, e.g. in Bremerhaven, Kiel, Schwerin and Pinneberg. Wolfgang Steen continued: “By founding a PPP company, local authorities are able to tap into REMONDIS’ potential. This offers them a far better alternative to running such businesses on their own or indeed selling them off completely to the private sector.”