Recyclables
Recover
Size sorting lines and set realistic capture targets for paper, plastics, glass and metals.
Waste composition analysis
Every night, a city throws away a story nobody has read.
2.01
billion tonnes of municipal waste a year, worldwide.
Source: World Bank, What a Waste 2.0 (2018)
Chapter 02 · The bag
Every recycling target starts with one question: what is in the bag?
Planners set targets, size plants and price packaging fees on estimates. When the estimate is wrong, a plant is built too big, a target is missed, or a producer pays the wrong fee.
0.74 kgwaste per person per day, global average
+70%expected growth by 2050, to 3.40 billion tonnes
Source: World Bank, What a Waste 2.0 (2018)
Chapter 03 · The rules
The rules have changed. Now every target needs a measured baseline.
Recycling, landfill and packaging targets are reported against real tonnages. Estimates that were good enough for a master plan are not good enough for a regulator.
- 2019Türkiye
Zero Waste Regulation
Source separation becomes a duty for public bodies and large sites, with a national goal of 60% recovery by 2035.
- 2020Türkiye
Recovery fee on packaging
Producers pay a recovery contribution (GEKAP) on packaging they place on the market.
- 2026European Union
Packaging regulation applies
Regulation (EU) 2025/40 on packaging and packaging waste applies from 12 August 2026.
- 2035European Union
65% recycled, 10% landfilled
Municipal waste must reach 65% recycling, with no more than 10% sent to landfill.
Every one of these targets is measured against a baseline. Most cities have never sorted their own waste.
Chapter 04 · The sample
We start where the waste does: on the collection route.
Samples are drawn at random from real trucks, on a logged schedule. The plan is stratified so every part of the city counts in proportion to what it produces.
- Zone · urban / suburban / rural
- Income · low / middle / high
- Season · 2–4 rounds a year
- Source · household / commercial
- Mass · 90–135 kg per sample
Chapter 05 · The sort
SAMPLE MSW-R2-014 · residential9 / 9
112.3kg sorted of 112.3 kg
Illustrative sample. Real studies use 30–60 categories.
Step 1
Open the bag
The sample is tipped onto a screened sorting table. Fines under 10 mm fall through and are weighed on their own.
Step 2
Sort by hand
Trained crews pick each item into an agreed category tree: food, garden, paper, film, rigid plastic, PET, glass, metals and more.
Step 3
Weigh every fraction
Each category goes onto a calibrated scale. The weight is captured on a tablet with a photo, so nothing is retyped later.
Step 4
Close the balance
Sorted weights must add back up to the sample weight. Any gap above tolerance is investigated before the sample is accepted.
Chapter 06 · The numbers
One sample is an anecdote. Forty samples are evidence.
We weight every sample by the stratum it represents and report each category with its confidence interval. You see what the data can support, and where it cannot.
Residual MSW · weighted mean, % by massn = 40 · 95% CI
0%25%50%
Illustrative results.
Chapter 07 · The data
No paper forms. You watch the study as it happens.
Every weight is entered once, on a tablet at the sorting table. It reaches your dashboard the same minute, with its photo and its sample record.
- Tablet sort sheetsCategory tree, scale reading and photo in one step.
- Live resultsProgress by zone and season, with running means and intervals.
- Audit trailWho weighed what, when and where. Every record can be traced.
- Your data, your copyRaw data, photos and dashboard stay with you after the study.
Balance−0.4%
Samples32/40
Sorted3.6 t
Organics44.8%
Chapter 08 · The decision
Then the data decides where each fraction goes.
Composition data turns into collection design, plant capacity, targets and fees. It is the difference between planning and guessing.
Organics
Treat
Plan separate food and garden collection, composting or anaerobic digestion from real tonnages.
Residual
Reduce
Measure what still reaches landfill, year after year, and prove that policies are working.
Chapter 09 · Who we serve
Different clients, one question: what is really in the waste?
Municipalities & regions
How much food waste would a separate collection really capture?
Baselines for waste plans, collection tenders and Zero Waste reporting.
EPR schemes & producers
What share of the bin is packaging, by material and format?
Data for fee modulation, recycled-content claims and deposit return design.
Recycling & MRF operators
How much value is leaving the plant in the residue?
Input, product and residue audits that put a price on lost material.
Energy from waste & cement kilns
What calorific value and chlorine will the fuel feed deliver?
Composition and laboratory data for RDF and SRF supply contracts.
Ports, airports & campuses
What does our site throw away, and what can be avoided?
Site audits for operators that report on waste and want lower disposal costs.
Development banks & consultants
Is the feasibility study built on measured data?
Independent field data for investment appraisals and master plans.
Chapter 10 · What we do
Field audits backed by real statistics
Waste composition audits
Seasonal, multi-zone sorting studies of household, commercial and construction waste, from one district to a whole country.
Sampling design & statistics
Stratification by zone, income, route and season, with sample sizes chosen to meet your precision target.
MRF & plant performance
Input, output and residue audits that show capture rates, contamination and lost revenue.
RDF / SRF characterisation
Physical composition, particle size and sampling support for refuse-derived and solid recovered fuels.
EPR & packaging data
Packaging share by material and format, used to set producer fees, targets and deposit return baselines.
Digital field platform
Tablet sort sheets, connected scales, photo records and a results dashboard you keep after the study.
- Sample mass
- 90–135 kg
- Sort categories
- 30–60
- Confidence level
- 90–95%
- Seasons
- 2–4 / year
Methods aligned with ASTM D5231 EU SWA-Tool EN ISO 21645
Quality & safety
Numbers you can defend, from crews who go home safe.
Calibrated scales
Every scale is checked with reference weights at the start of each shift, and the check is logged.
Mass balance
Sorted fractions must add up to the sample weight within a set tolerance before a sample counts.
Laboratory partners
Moisture, calorific value, chlorine and metals are tested in ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratories.
Health & safety
Cut-resistant gloves, respiratory protection, a sharps procedure and vaccinated crews on every site.
Trained sorters
Each crew is inducted on the category tree with a photo guide and supervised by a field lead.
Independent review
A second analyst checks weighting, outliers and intervals before any figure leaves the office.
Chapter 11 · Where we work
Based in İzmir. A short flight from three continents.
We mobilise field crews from İzmir, or recruit and train local sorters under our own field leads. Studies run on the same method wherever they happen.
Europe
Middle East
Central Asia
Africa
South Asia
İzmir
- Up to 3 hours by air
- Up to 5 hours by air
- Up to 7 hours by air
Field-ready kitSorting tables, scales and PPE ship with the crew.
Local crews, our methodSorters trained on site and supervised by our field leads.
One report formatResults comparable across cities, countries and years.
Chapter 12 · Your study
Size your study in a minute.
Move the sliders to see how many samples, how much sorting and how long a study like yours usually takes.
For example: urban, suburban, rural, each split by income.
61samples per season
122samples in total
13.4 twaste sorted by hand
16field days
10–12weeks from kick-off to final report
Your area produces about 370 tonnes of waste a day at the global average.
Indicative only. Assumes 95% confidence, a coefficient of variation of 0.6 for the main fraction, about 110 kg per sample and 8 samples a day per crew.
Sample report
See what you get before you commission it.
An eight-page sample report for a fictional city: sampling design, results with confidence intervals, and recommendations. PDF, in English.
Questions
What clients ask before they start
How many samples does a study need?
It depends on how variable the waste is and how precise the results must be. Most municipal studies need 30 to 150 samples per season. The calculator above gives a first estimate, and we confirm it in the sampling plan.
How long does a study take?
Planning takes two to four weeks. Fieldwork takes one to three weeks per season. The final report follows three to four weeks after the last round.
Which standards do you follow?
Our methods are aligned with ASTM D5231 and the EU SWA-Tool for municipal waste, and EN ISO 21645 for sampling solid recovered fuels. Category trees are matched to your national reporting.
Do you work outside Türkiye?
Yes. We bring crews and equipment from İzmir, or train local sorters under our own field leads. Reports are delivered in English or Turkish.
What do we receive at the end?
A full report, the raw data, the photo archive, access to the results dashboard and a methods annex that lets anyone repeat the study.
What do you need from us?
Access to collection routes, a covered area of about 100 m² near the trucks, and a contact person in the operations team. We bring the tables, scales and protective equipment.
Chapter 13 · Your chapter
What is in your city's bag?
Tell us about the waste stream, the area and the decision you need to make. We reply with a sampling outline and a cost estimate.
- Base
- İzmir, Türkiye
- Coverage
- Projects worldwide
- Working languages
- English · Türkçe