340,000 tons of waste recycled annually in Ulaanbaatar

Of the 1.4 million tons of waste produced annually in Ulaanbaatar, 24 percent is recycled, reports the Mongolian National Recycling Association.

At the first Council on Waste Management meeting, the association reported that 340,000 tons of waste is recycled. City officials and waste management officials have stated that 85 percent of all waste produced can be recycled.

Eighty-nine percent of metal waste, namely iron, is recycled; 61 percent of plastic waste is recycled; and 11 percent of glass, 13 percent of cardboard, and 49 percent of animal product waste is recycled. The Mongolian National Recycling Association reported that sorting waste is the most costly part of recycling, and proposed implementing an automated system to sort waste.