Examining EU Deposit Return Schemes offers lessons for Romania’s recycling system expansion and improvement.
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Romania collected money for 600 million bottles, PET containers, and SGR doses deposited at collection machines in August 2025. The article examines how Romania can expand packaging and develop its system in villages and communes by learning from EU countries with over 20 years of experience. In the first eight months of 2025, Romania achieved recycling rates of 77% for plastic, 71% for aluminum, and 70% for glass. Over 15 European countries have SGR systems, with Sweden (since 1984) and Iceland (since 1989) being among the oldest; Nordic countries exceed 90% collection rates for PET containers. While large countries like Spain and Italy lack a national Deposit Return Scheme, they possess developed recycling infrastructure. Experienced countries show that SGR systems take time to achieve high collection rates, and expanding to new packaging types is not immediate. Germany’s Pfand system, operational since 2003 with a 98% recycling rate, includes both single-use and reusable containers, offering different deposit amounts. Spain plans to implement a national Deposit Return Scheme by November 2026, despite current low plastic bottle recycling rates. Croatia has an established SGR program since 2006, recently increasing its guarantee value in 2025 and including more packaging types. Austria expanded its SGR on January 1, 2025, to include plastic containers and aluminum cans with a 25-cent guarantee, aiming for a 90% return rate by 2029. The Czech Republic has had an SGR system since the early 20th century, with plans to extend collection to beverage doses and PET bottles in 2026.
