A Garbage Story

When we lived in Geneva, we had three big garbage containers for my neighbors and my family. You just threw in any rubbish, kitchen scraps, broken furniture, paper, glass, and plastic bottles, obsolete electronics, e.g., whole television sets, and garden waste. You just name it. A garbage truck came by once a week and emptied the containers.

In an earlier blog, I informed you that Freiburg has an elaborate system for separating waste: a green (?) container for paper, a brown bin for organic compostable materials, and a yellow plastic bag for used packaging materials. All these things will be recycled. But there is more separation. Near my house, a row of containers accepts bottles of brown, green, and clear glass separately, and there are also bins for scrap metal, used electronics, and clothing.

Materials that cannot be recycled are regarded as Restmüll (garbage) and go into a dark-gray bin. When we moved to Freiburg, I roughly understood that I had to rent a standard Restmülltonne (garbage bin) with a capacity of 140 liters, whose volume can be adjusted by an insert according to needs. I had the choice between volumes of 35, 60, and 140 liters and between emptying the Tonne every 1 or 2 weeks.

Jährliche Behältergebühr Restmülltonne 2015
Abfuhr	35 Liter	60 Liter	140 Liter
14-täglich	36,78 €	63,12 €	147,12 €
wöchentlich	73,56 €	126,24 €	294,24 €

Garbage generally "stinks," so I opted for a 60-liter volume to be emptied once a week, at a cost of about 100 euros a year (prices have since increased). The other household containers (brown, green, and yellow plastic sacks) are free of charge, as recycling materials largely cover the cost of emptying those bins.

My Restmülltonne had hardly arrived when my doorbell started ringing insistently. My neighbor was standing there, "Das geht aber gar nicht (That doesn't work at all)," and started to give me a seminar in Müllogie (garbagery). "Here in our building, we have two garbage bins of 140 liters to be emptied once a week, where we, the apartment owners, share the charge. You must return your private garbage bin and join our garbage club." She insisted so much that I became intimidated. I have to admit, the sharing system worked fine, as it does in my new apartment.

However, not all works well in the system. Some people try to minimize costs and choose a much too small volume for their garbage bin, hoping there will be free space in their neighbor's bin. If this is not the case, they heap their garbage so that the bin's lid cannot be closed. This happens in 10% of all containers.

From today on, Freiburg's garbage men will issue a warning in the form of a yellow sticker if a bin lid is not closed. The color will change from yellow to red starting on November 1, and the garbage bin will remain unemptied. Things are looking grim, but the households concerned have three choices to get rid of their garbage:

Legally: You buy a special red Restmüllsack (35-liter garbage bags for 3,96 euros or 70-liter bags for 7,92 euros), fill the red plastic bag with your garbage, and leave it for collection the following week.

Semi-legally: You make small garbage packages and carry those to the nearest public waste bin.

Illegally: You dispose of your garbage somewhere in Freiburg and its surroundings.

With all those lids not closed and ticketed, some fear a littered Freiburg. Will the Green City eventually need a Stadtkümmerer?

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