The significant share of logistics costs related to the return of products and their packaging in the total operating costs of enterprises means that these companies are paying increasing attention to the issues of so-called reverse logistics. The primary stimulus for enterprises is strict environmental protection regulations, which impose responsibility on them for the packaging introduced to the market, from which waste is generated. One of the specific elements within the scope of waste management issues is the selective collection of packaging waste at the source, which arises as a result of the consumption of products and services by the consumer, i.e., the last link in the supply chain. The dispersion and mixing of this waste, as well as the significant variation in its degree of utility, mean that its collection and preparation for processing within the recycling process constitute a particular logistical challenge. The element of reverse logistics processes that will be modeled in this article is the development of a selective packaging waste collection network in a large city.
The need for municipal waste management
Poland is considered one of the European countries with the lowest ratio of packaging waste mass per capita, which indicates that the mass of generated waste will increase along with rising prosperity. Despite existing EU directive guidelines in this regard, currently in Poland, only about 3% of the stream of approximately 13.5 million tons of municipal solid waste is selectively collected and sent for recycling. The remainder of the waste processed in recycling plants comes from so-called concentrated sources, i.e., supply chain links such as retail chains, distribution centers, manufacturing plants, etc. These proportions mean that, given the growing requirements of the European Union regarding the reduction of the mass of pollutants emitted into the natural environment, and in particular the mass of waste sent to landfills, significant changes in these areas should be expected. The scale of the untapped economic potential contained in waste is also not without significance.
The article comes from the magazine “Logistyka” 6/2006.