SINGAPORE: Pollution by meals waste is one of the biggest challenges in recycling in Singapore, said an industry player.
According to Mr. Derek Chong, senior director of operations at Chye Thiam Maintenance, which offers recycling service, one contaminated recycling bucket has the ability to contaminate several batches of items because they all fit into the same vehicle.
When one chemical enters a dumpster from ten different places, he said,” the whole 10 volumes are contaminated” if we are collecting recyclables.”  ,
” For instance, the sauce from your left food, the chilli soup, these are foods spend contaminants … Once that is mixed with recyclables, the recyclables cannot be used”.
According to the most recent waste and recycling statistics released by the National Environment Agency ( NEA ), Singapore’s overall recycling rate has decreased from 62 % to 52 % over the past ten years.
Domestic recycling rate is still at 12 %.
Under Singapore’s Zero Waste Masterplan, the nation aims to increase its overall recycling level to 70 per cent by 2030.
Associate Professor Johan Sulaeman, chairman of the National University of Singapore’s Sustainable and Green Finance Institute, urged people to take recycling more seriously.
” Choose pay close attention to what you are really trying to recycle.” Do n’t just throw trash into the recycling bin”, he said.
He noted that recycling in Singapore is very easy. ” People just need to understand that it’s that easy”, he added.  ,