Bridging the gaps: recommendations for improving the status quo pertaining to textile waste data discrepancies in the Czech Republic

Soňa Klepek JONÁŠOVÁ^a, Bedřich MOLDAN^a, Andrea VESELÁ^b
a Faculty of Humanities, Charles University, Pátkova 2137/5, 182 00 Prague 8, Czech Republic, e-mail: sona.jonasova@gmail.com
^b Institute of Circular Economy (INCIEN), Hybernská 998/4, 110 00 Prague, Czech Republic, e-mail: andrea.vesela@incien.org

This article provides an in-depth analysis of textile waste streams and pertaining data gaps at various levels in the Czech Republic, focusing on identifying and quantifying data gaps that hinder accurate material flow analyses. The research was conducted through a combination of existing data collection from available statistics and semi-structured interviews with 25 key stakeholders across the textile supply chain, including manufacturers, waste managers, and recycling entities. The study uncovered significant data gaps in areas such as textile waste from producers generating less than 100 tons per year, deadstock disposal, and textile waste in mixed municipal waste. These gaps present challenges to effective waste management and the implementation of the European Union's Strategy for Sustainable and Circular Textiles. The findings also highlight the critical need for standardised data collection methodologies and enhanced collaboration among stakeholders to improve data accuracy and support the transition to a circular economy in the textile sector. The article concludes with targeted recommendations for improving data collection practices and policy frameworks to address these gaps and facilitate better decision-making for sustainable textile management in the Czech Republic

Keywords: Textile waste, data gaps, textile waste management, circular economy, circular waste management

Remove of cesium and strontium ions in water using natural zeolite

Eva MIŠTOVÁ, Jelena Toropitsyna, Miloslav Houšťava, Lenka Matoušková, Helena Parschová, Luděk Jelínek
University of Chemistry and Technology Prague, Faculty of Environmental Technology, Department of Power Engineering, Technická 5, 166 28 Prague 6, Czech Republic,
e-mail: eva.mistova@vscht.cz

The aim of the experiments was to verify the possibilities of using natural zeolite from the locality Nižný Hrabovec (Slovakia) in the removal of cesium and strontium ions from various types of water (demineralized/drinking/sea). Equilibrium batch experiments were carried out and demonstrated the high sorption efficiency of zeolite for the removal of cesium ions, where 65 mg/g (i.e. 0.49 meq/g) was captured from the demineralized water solution, while the amount of captured strontium was 19 mg/g (i.e. 0.44 meq/g). In the presence of competing cations (Na⁺, K⁺, NH₄⁺, Mg²⁺, Ca²⁺), the captured amount of cesium and strontium ions decreases. Thus, 61 mg/g (i.e. 0.46 meq/g) of cesium and 18 mg/g (i.e. 0.41 meq/g) of strontium was captured from the model drinking water solution and from the model seawater solution 47 mg/g of cesium and 5 mg/g of strontium was captured from. Column dynamic experiments also demonstrated high selectivity towards cesium ions. The expected effect of both magnesium and calcium ions on strontium sorption was confirmed. Unexpectedly, a strong effect of calcium ions on cesium sorption was also found, even at the calcium concentration common in drinking water (i.e. 40–80 mg/L). Dynamic column arrangement for the sorption of strontium from seawater was unsuccessful, for the sorption of cesium it was necessary to change the pretreatment and to reduce the specific column load from 15 to 6 m³/m³·h.

Keywords: cesium; strontium; natural zeolite; sorption; drinking water; seawater

Supporting green algae production in biogas plant operation

Pavla TOMÁŠOVÁ, Marek ŠÍR, Zuzana HONZAJKOVÁ, Jana CHUMCHALOVÁ, Jiří HENDRYCH, Eva MARCÍNKOVÁ, Martin KUBAL
University of Chemistry and Technology Prague, Faculty of Environmental Technology, Czech Republic e-mail: hrychovp@vscht.cz

The use of pretreated liquid digestate from a biogas plant was studied within the cultivation of green algae to utilize the inorganic components contained. The digestate was pretreated by 1) sieving and 2) by sieving followed by chemical precipitation. The algae Scenedesmus cf. acutus Meyen CCALA 438 was used for the cultivation tests carried out with four levels of illumination. The highest yield of algal biomass was observed in the digestate pretreated by sieving alone, which provides a chance for a technologically simple and economically acceptable implementation.

Keywords: Biogas plant, digestion residues, green algae.

Application of Environmental Management Measures in Accommodation Facilities: Evidence From Czechia

Petr SCHOLZ^a, Ivica LINDEROVÁ^b, Pavla VRABCOVÁ^c*
a Prague University of Economics and Business, Winston Churchill Sq. 1938/4, 130 67 Prague 3, Czechia
^b College of Polytechnics Jihlava, Tolstého 16, 586 01 Jihlava, Czechia
^c Technical University of Liberec, Faculty of Economics, Voroněžská 13, 460 01 Liberec, Czechia;
* corresponding author: e-mail: pavla.vrabcova@tul.cz

Trends in accommodation services in recent years include an approach to ecology and the principles of sustainable development. These trends manifest mainly in large hotel companies, but independent hotels and guesthouses with a smaller bed capacity are also trying to go green. The goal of this article is to analyze the application of environmental measures in selected accommodation facilities in Czechia (administrative district Žďár and Sázavou). The questionnaire was evaluated as the most suitable data collection method to answer the research questions. Accommodation facilities (n = 47) were contacted from November 2022 to March 2023, and the selection set consisted of 33 accommodation facilities. The method of correspondence analysis was used for the evaluation, and the STATISTICA 12 software was used for graphical representation. The results indicate minimal differences in the number of environmental measures implemented between collective accommodation facilities, i.e., hotels and guesthouses. The categories of apartments, and cottages & chalets achieved reasonable results. However, they did not apply more than half of the environmental measures concerning employees and guests. On the other hand, the star rating of accommodation facilities is not a key parameter in the environmental impact assessment. The research results are helpful for the practice of national professional associations that promote resource conservation and thus influence the entire hospitality industry. Furthermore, they can be used by other accommodation facilities to gain information on sustainability issues or examples of best environmental practices.

Keywords: hospitality, accommodation facilities, environmental management, Czechia

Autorská práva:

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Autorská práva:

WASTE FORUM, jejímž autorem je CEMC - České ekologické manažerské centrum, podléhá licenci Creative Commons 3.0 Česko. V případě převzetí článku vždy uvádějte WASTE FORUM jako zdroj s prolinkem, děkujeme.

WASTE FORUM, authored by CEMC - Czech Environmental Management Center, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 Czechia license. When taking over the article, always mention WASTE FORUM as a source with a link, thank you.

ISSN: 1804-0195