CERN respects the environment

For several years, various measures have been implemented at CERN to optimize recycling and meet the following related challenges: 

  • Reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill or incinerated
  • Reduce pollution and contribute to the protection of the environment
  • Reduce the use of raw materials in favor of recycled materials
  • Reduce the cost of waste processing

 

At CERN, around 55% of waste is recycled and repurposed*, not counting energy recovery from incinerable waste. We recycle/repurpose the following types of waste:

  • Aluminium cans
  • Glass (bottles, windows)
  • Green waste
  • Incinerable waste
  • Nespresso capsules
  • Organic waste from restaurants
  • Paper / cardboard
  • Polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
  • Printer toner cartridges
  • Scrap metal
  • "SAGEX" expanded polystyrene
  • Wood
  • Worksite waste

For more information on recycling and repurposing, click here. 

 * Waste repurposing: reuse of waste. Repurposing covers all operations carried out on waste in order to create a new material/product of equal or superior quality. Waste is repurposed in order to reduce the amount of waste that is ultimately disposed of. 

 

Anyone producing or in possession of waste is responsible for it until it is disposed of or repurposed, even when the waste is passed on to a third party to be treated.

All waste collected on the CERN sites is transported to the relevant treatment center.

On arrival, the waste is weighed and its category checked, and a document confirming receipt is issued for the purposes of traceability.

 

For more information on waste collections at CERN, you can visit the following pages: 

- Skips, containers and 1m³ bins

- What goes where?

Worksites and external contractors: please contact us for the procedure relating to waste collection services, including worksite waste .

 

 

 

 

You still have questions?

Please contact us at cern.dechets@cern.ch