Schwabach as a pioneer: Germany's most recycled paper-friendly city!

Schwabach as a pioneer: Germany's most recycled paper-friendly city!

Schwabach has fought for a place among the most recycled paper-friendly medium-sized cities in Germany and takes an excellent seventh place in the Paper Atlas city competition of the Initiative Pro Recyclingpapier (IPR). The title of “most recycled paper-friendly medium-sized city” goes to Amberg in 2025. In a competition in which 110 large and medium-sized cities took part, Schwabach achieved an impressive recycled paper quota of 100 percent in administration and schools, reports the city administration, which plays an important role in climate and resource protection.

Last year, Schwabach saved over 1 million liters of water and more than 246,200 kilowatt hours of energy by switching to Blue Angel paper. This water saving meets the daily needs of more than 9,000 people, while the energy saved would be enough to meet the annual electricity needs of 70 three-person households.

Sustainability in focus

Marc Gebauer, spokesman for IPR, praises Schwabach as a pioneer in sustainable paper procurement. Peter Reiß, the mayor of Schwabach, emphasizes the importance of these measures for the city administration. The Paper Atlas has been tracking paper consumption and recycled paper quotas in German cities since 2008 and has also included universities in its analysis since 2016 and districts since 2018, as the initiative explains in detail.

In this context, the Philipps University of Marburg cannot be overlooked. It took tenth place in the Paper Atlas University Competition 2023 and also uses environmentally friendly recycled paper with the Blue Angel. According to a current life cycle assessment by the Federal Environment Agency, the university saved over 1.2 million liters of water and more than 280,000 kilowatt hours of energy in 2022 compared to fresh fiber paper. Here too, the contribution to climate and resource protection is of great importance, as the example of Schwabach clearly shows.

Record participation and collaborations

In 2023, the Paper Atlas achieved a new record participation with 230 municipalities and universities. The cooperation with the Federal Environment Ministry, the Federal Environment Agency, the German Association of Cities, the German Association of Cities and Municipalities as well as the German District Association and the German University Association underline the relevance of this initiative to promote the sustainable use of resources.

The initiatives in Schwabach and Marburg impressively show how cities and universities can work together in the same direction to make a noticeable difference in the area of ​​environmental protection. The paper atlas remains an important tool for documenting such progress and providing communities with incentives to become even more sustainable. If you would like to find out more about the results, you can contact us at www.papieratlas.de inform.