Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Recycling
Norwegians strongly support the sorting of household waste for collection and recycling,
and travellers are encouraged to do likewise. A mandatory deposit scheme for glass bottles
and cans has been a success and about 96% of beer and soft-drink bottles are now re-
turned. Supermarkets give money back for returned aluminium cans and plastic bottles
(usually Nkr1 to Nkr1.50).
Since the early 1970s, however, the average annual level of household waste generated
per person has nearly doubled to around 375kg, a rise that coincides with the golden years
of Norway's oil-fuelled prosperity boom. Although it took a while to catch on, around 50%
of household waste and two-thirds of industrial waste is now recycled, while Norway is a
world leader when it comes to recycling electrical and electronics products. Methane from
waste nonetheless still accounts for 7% of Norway's greenhouse gas emissions and Norwe-
gians consume more than 130,000 tonnes of plastic packaging every year.
SUSTAINABLE NORWAY 2015
In 2007, Norway's government announced its flagship manifesto on sustainable tourism.
Entitled 'Sustainable Norway 2015', it aims to increase awareness of sustainable tourism
(both within the industry and wider community), as well as place sustainability at the
heart of all new and existing tourism developments. Run through the quasi-government
Innovation Norway (
www.innovasjonnorge.no/no/english
), the program is both a market-
ing tool and a code of practice for the tourism industry, although its impact upon (and
visibility for) your average tourist remains minimal. The four destinations chosen for the
pilot phase of the project are two Unesco World Heritage-listed sites, Vega and Røros, as
well as fjordside Lærdal (scene of a spectacular fire in 2014) and the ski resort of Trysil.
