The copious amounts of distressed Kallax shelves, lidless Tupperware boxes and worn Teflon frying pans that decorate Berlin’s streets cost the city around 10 million euros to clean up in 2023, according to Tagesschau.

Illegal rubbish dumping cost Berlin 10 million euros

According to figures from Tagesschau, Berliner Stadt Reinigung (BSR), the rubbish collection company which is owned by the city state, paid around 9,7 million euros to dispose of illegally dumped rubbish in 2023.

With the addition of dumped cars and rubbish in the rivers, canals and lakes of Berlin, for which BSR is not responsible, the city’s annual bill for 2023 came to around 10 million euros.

Mitte, Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg and Neukölln are the most affected

Of Berlin’s 12 districts, Mitte, Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg and Neukölln see the biggest amount of illegal waste dumped on their streets, especially in the neighbourhoods’ green spaces. In total, around 40 cubic metres of illegal waste was disposed of in Berlin in 2022.

According to the BSR, fly-tipping remains a problem in Berlin because it is so hard to identify who has dumped rubbish, with much of the illegal deposits being made under the cover of darkness.

Thumb image credit: Werner Spremberg / Shutterstock.com