Sorting at source now compulsory for hotels and restaurants
sorting at source
24 Jan 2019
/ 10:20
ATHENS. As well as meeting places and public services.
Sorting of waste at source will now be compulsory for public services and other places where people gather (hotels, restaurants etc.). Deputy Minister for the Environment Socrates Famelos made the announcement yesterday at a press conference regarding plans to limit the use of plastic bags. He said that local authorities have already been informed that measures to limit the amount of waste reaching the processing stage - by sorting at source etc. - are necessary in order for Local Authority waste management plans to be licensed.
According to the President of the National Recycling Organization (EOAN) Dimitris Politopoulos, a Ministerial Decision will be issued immediately requiring municipalities to submit to the Organization how they will implement their local waste management plan, how they will implement the sorting at source of four material types (paper, glass, plastic, metal) and how they will achieve the other national targets for recycling, waste management etc. He also said that the EOAN system will record and monitor the results of the local waste management plans.
Based on Community legislation, municipalities must develop their waste management plans so that the state can stop paying fines to the European Commission. Both the Minister for Energy and the Environment Giorgos Stathakis, at a special parliamentary committee meeting for energy planning yesterday, and the Deputy Minister Mr. Famelos, in 2015, said that Greece is the worst country in Europe as regards waste management. Mr Stathakis pointed out that "Only the innovative management plan in Chania - thanks to the enlightened Mayor and Regional Governor - has developed properly".
It appears that the Ministry will put pressure on the municipalities to move forward as there have been very few efforts to limit the amount of refuse reaching the landfills or processing facilities as required by the EU.
As regards plastic bags it seems that at least with supermarkets things are going as initially planned. There has been an 80% decrease in the use of plastic bags in supermarkets and 60% in other shops. As part of the "Battle of the Bag" it was announced that there will be a pilot project in four municipalities (Nafpaktos, Alonisos, Halandri, Volvi) with distribution of multi-purpose bags. This is part of the plan to raise public awareness regarding recycling and will be funded from the plastic bag charge. Following these four towns, an invitation to tender will be issued, with a budget of 13m Euros, for the provision of approximately 10,800,000 multi-purpose bags (plastic and fabric/cloth) to be distributed throughout the country via the municipalities. Mr. Politopoulos said that the cloth bags have been designed by the well-known fashion designer Celia Kritharioti. The invitation for tender for the 10,800,000 bags will be announced in the first four months of the year in collaboration with the General Secretariat for Trade.
Giorgos Alexakis
Source: reporter.gr
According to the President of the National Recycling Organization (EOAN) Dimitris Politopoulos, a Ministerial Decision will be issued immediately requiring municipalities to submit to the Organization how they will implement their local waste management plan, how they will implement the sorting at source of four material types (paper, glass, plastic, metal) and how they will achieve the other national targets for recycling, waste management etc. He also said that the EOAN system will record and monitor the results of the local waste management plans.
Based on Community legislation, municipalities must develop their waste management plans so that the state can stop paying fines to the European Commission. Both the Minister for Energy and the Environment Giorgos Stathakis, at a special parliamentary committee meeting for energy planning yesterday, and the Deputy Minister Mr. Famelos, in 2015, said that Greece is the worst country in Europe as regards waste management. Mr Stathakis pointed out that "Only the innovative management plan in Chania - thanks to the enlightened Mayor and Regional Governor - has developed properly".
It appears that the Ministry will put pressure on the municipalities to move forward as there have been very few efforts to limit the amount of refuse reaching the landfills or processing facilities as required by the EU.
As regards plastic bags it seems that at least with supermarkets things are going as initially planned. There has been an 80% decrease in the use of plastic bags in supermarkets and 60% in other shops. As part of the "Battle of the Bag" it was announced that there will be a pilot project in four municipalities (Nafpaktos, Alonisos, Halandri, Volvi) with distribution of multi-purpose bags. This is part of the plan to raise public awareness regarding recycling and will be funded from the plastic bag charge. Following these four towns, an invitation to tender will be issued, with a budget of 13m Euros, for the provision of approximately 10,800,000 multi-purpose bags (plastic and fabric/cloth) to be distributed throughout the country via the municipalities. Mr. Politopoulos said that the cloth bags have been designed by the well-known fashion designer Celia Kritharioti. The invitation for tender for the 10,800,000 bags will be announced in the first four months of the year in collaboration with the General Secretariat for Trade.
Giorgos Alexakis
Source: reporter.gr
