Procurement of 1.2 million waste sorting bins ahead

A total of 1.2 million waste sorting bins for biodegradable waste (paper, cardboard and biowaste) and recyclable municipal waste (plastic and glass) are to be distributed in 407 municipalities and cities in Croatia.

The procurement worth HRK 315 million (EUR 42.5 million) will be financed under the Competitiveness and Cohesion Operational Programme 2014-2020.

Croatian Minister of Environmental Protection and Energy Tomislav Ćorić has signed a decision awarding the grant funds to the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund (FZOEU).

Over the coming months, the FZOEU will launch the public procurement of 1,230,695 bins for cities and municipalities that have applied for around 450,000 bins for waste paper, 2,700 for waste glass, 525,000 for plastic waste, more than 14,000 for the separate collection of biowaste, and over 113,000 for mixed solid recyclable waste.

The project is aimed at further supporting the establishment of waste sorting at source to increase the separate collection and recycling of municipal waste, as well as to decrease the biodegradable share of municipal waste currently landfilled and the disposal of mixed municipal waste, in line with obligations under the law on sustainable waste and municipal waste management and the waste management plan for 2017-2022, the ministry said.

The procurement of bins will contribute to fulfilling Croatia’s obligation to secure the separate collection and recycling of waste paper, plastic, and glass and special types of waste.

The FZOEU and the ministry will also carry out awareness raising campaigns concerning proper waste sorting. The educational campaigns will also be carried out by local governments, for residents of their territories, backed by EU funds.

In September 2018, the EU said that Croatia is one of 14 EU member states at risk of missing the 2020 target of 50% recycling for municipal waste. Croatia’s recycling rate is at 21%, down from the EU average of 47%.

At the end of 2017, mixed municipal waste accounted for 72% of overall municipal waste, while 28% was separately collected. By the end of 2022, the share of mixed municipal waste should decrease to 40%, while the share of separately collected waste should rise to 60%, according to the Croatian media.