“Norway cannot meet the EU’s plastic bag requirements if residents in Oslo use plastic carrier bags for residual waste.”Cecilie Lind, CEO of The Norwegian Retailers' Environment Fund
Here you will find answers to the most common questions – and an explanation of why the situation varies across the country.
Most people in Norway –approximately 82% of the population– has a collection scheme for their waste. Bin liners work perfectly well here. In kerbside collection schemes, residual waste, food waste and plastic packaging are collected separately, and the bags are not handled mechanically – which means bin liners work perfectly well there.
The Municipality of Oslo and a few municipalities in Northern Norway use optical sorting. In such facilities, the bags are sortedafterthat they are collected, and loose waste from bags that have burst will then create problems. Studies conducted by The Norwegian Retailers' Environment Fund at the Oslo Municipality facility show that both plastic carrier bags and thinner waste bags can burst during collection and create problems.
The Norwegian Retailers' Environment Fund has been in dialogue with the Agency for Waste Management and Recycling in Oslo regarding this issue for several years and has tested waste bags in their optical sorting facility in order to help them and the retail sector with the right recommendations for waste bags. This has provided the basis forthisthe guidance for bin liners on a roll.
The Norwegian Retailers' Environment Fund was established as Norway’s instrument for achieving the EU’s plastic bag reduction target. The Fund is not responsible for which bags are sold, but provides advice and recommendations to its members.
