Brussels, 15/11/2013 (Agence Europe) - Promoting the implementation of measures to heighten public awareness of the need for sustainable management of resources and waste - that is the main aim of the European Waste Reduction Week (EWRW) which kicks off on Saturday 16 November. For the next seven days the spotlight will be on the importance of the “3Rs” - encouraging citizens to “Reduce, Reuse and Recycle”. It is the fifth edition of an annual event that is enjoying growing success. The principle is in line with the hierarchy of waste treatment solutions set out in EU legislation (framework directive on waste), which relegates to the last resort both landfill and waste elimination by incineration without energy production.
The event, coordinated by the Association of Cities and Regions for Recycling and Sustainable Waste Management (ACR+) and supported financially by the EU's LIFE+ programme, provides an opportunity to encourage the public to see how it can change its habits, but also to promote debate underway on the effective use of resources and the circular economy, an issue so often taken up by Janez Potocnik, European Environment Commissioner.
“There is enormous potential in reusing and recycling waste. We are making great progress in moving up the waste hierarchy … reducing landfill and increasing recycling. Grassroots initiatives like the European Week of Waste Reduction are an important way of involving everyone in the creation of a zero-waste society”, the commissioner said the day before the event.
As the EWRW highlights new ways to spread the word on the 3Rs, this will mean fine-tuning and testing communication tools for reaching out to administrations, associations, companies, schools and citizens. The week's activity will end with thematic days on the prevention of waste which, this year, will focus on reuse, with local activities such as second-hand markets, repair workshops and swap parties.
In order to reduce the quantity of waste dumped in the countryside and to make the public aware of this worrying phenomenon, a “Let's Clean Up Europe” Day, scheduled for 10 May 2014, will be launched under EWRW coordination.
The European Environment Bureau (EEB) published an analysis study in March on the EU's achievements on sustainable waste management during the last decade, showing that, despite a rise in the rate of recycling in some countries (on the whole, 35% of municipal waste were recycled in Europe in 2010 compared to 23% in 2001), landfill is still a waste of precious resources in Europe and many countries will struggle to reach the recycling targets set out in EU legislation (50% of household and similar waste by 2020). In 2014, the European Commission will carry out a review of EU waste strategy. Launched in 2009, the EWRW initially aimed at making citizens more aware of waste prevention. (AN/transl.jl)