Türkiye has recovered 90 million tons of recyclable waste since launching its Zero Waste Movement in 2017, increasing its national recovery rate to 37.53% in 2025 from 13% at the start of the programme, Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change Minister Murat Kurum said.

Kurum shared the figures in a social media post marking the ninth year of the initiative, which was launched under the leadership of First Lady Emine Erdoğan.

The government aims to increase the national recovery rate to 60% by 2035 and 70% by 2053, according to ministry data. The Zero Waste Management System has now been implemented in about 220,000 buildings and campuses, while 28 million people have received related training.

Of the 90 million tons of waste recovered through the end of 2025, 36.1 million tons consisted of paper and cardboard, 10.2 million tons of plastic, 3.5 million tons of glass and 9.6 million tons of metal. Another 30.6 million tons comprised organic and other recyclable waste.

The recovered materials generated an estimated 365 billion lira ($8.3 billion) in economic value, according to government figures.

The programme has also produced substantial resource savings, including 270 billion kilowatt-hours of energy and 2 trillion litres of water, the government said.

It estimates that recycling efforts have prevented the cutting of 613 million trees and avoided about 180 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions. The programme has also saved around 60 billion litres of oil and 390 million cubic metres of landfill capacity, according to figures released earlier this year.

The energy savings are equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of about 54 million households, while the water savings are roughly equivalent to two years of consumption in Istanbul, according to ministry calculations.

The Zero Waste initiative has increasingly been promoted by Ankara as part of its international environmental diplomacy.

The United Nations General Assembly declared March 30 International Zero Waste Day in 2022 following a resolution led by Türkiye and co-sponsored by 105 countries. The initiative has since expanded into a broader international environmental campaign.

The programme has also received international recognition. In April, it won the Green World Championship in the waste management category, taking the number of international awards received by the initiative to seven, according to Turkish authorities.

As of Sept. 25, more than 459,000 people from 136 countries had signed a Global Zero Waste Goodwill Declaration, while more than 50 spouses of leaders, senior representatives of international organisations and foreign ministers had also signed it, according to Turkish authorities.

Türkiye is also preparing to host the COP31 climate summit, and officials have increasingly linked the Zero Waste programme to the country's broader climate and sustainability agenda.

Kurum said Türkiye would continue expanding the programme as part of efforts to reduce waste and increase resource efficiency.

“We continue to work for a cleaner and greener world,” he said. (ILKHA)