They were bought at the height of the Corona pandemic and were never used. The protective masks have now passed their expiry date.
Four federal states burned a total of over 17 million expired corona masks. This emerges from a survey of the “world” in all countries.
6.1 million masks were destroyed in Baden-Württemberg, 5.5 million in Saxony, five million in North Rhine-Westphalia and 656,000 in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Eleven federal states announced that they had not yet disposed of any corona masks, but some were planning to do so. Thuringia could not provide any information about the type of recycling. The Federal Ministry of Health in Berlin has also “energetically recycled” masks in the past few months. The number is so far “less than a million pieces,” said a spokesman on request.
The masks that have now been destroyed were bought at the height of the pandemic and had passed their sell-by date. Several state ministries want to have more masks destroyed in the future. So far, however, you can only burn masks that you have bought yourself. For masks that the federal government has procured and distributed to the federal states, they need the approval of the federal government. When asked when approval can be given, a spokesman for the Federal Ministry of Health replied: “The BMG is in regular contact with both the federal states and the General Customs Directorate.”
Wearing masks on buses and trains? divided population
At the beginning of February, the mask requirement in long-distance traffic will fall nationwide – people in Germany are divided on the question of whether to wear a mask voluntarily. In a recent survey, 43 percent of those surveyed stated that they “very likely” or “rather likely” want to continue wearing mouth and nose protection on trains and buses, as the opinion research institute YouGov announced on Friday. On the other hand, 47 percent answered that they would rather or very likely not want to do this.
A week ago, Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) announced the end of the mask requirement on long-distance trains and buses on February 2nd. In local transport, for which the federal states are responsible, wearing a mask should no longer be compulsory until the beginning of February. Several federal states have already implemented this, and all others are now following suit. Lauterbach advocated wearing a mask voluntarily for self-protection.
Source: Stern
David William is a talented author who has made a name for himself in the world of writing. He is a professional author who writes on a wide range of topics, from general interest to opinion news. David is currently working as a writer at 24 hours worlds where he brings his unique perspective and in-depth research to his articles, making them both informative and engaging.
