Waste

Croatia’s Krk is world’s second zero waste island

croatia krk island zero waste

Photo: Dieter Ludwig Scharnagl from Pixabay

Published

November 1, 2024

Country

Comments

comments icon

0

Share

Published:

November 1, 2024

Country:

Comments:

comments icon

0

Share

Krk in Croatia has become the world’s second island with a zero waste certificate. The first one was Tilos in Greece.

Seven municipalities on Krk island – Krk, Baška, Dobrinj, Malinska-Dubašnica, Omišalj, Punat, and Vrbnik have been awarded the prestigious Zero Waste certification, presented to Europe’s most successful cities and municipalities, Zero Waste Europe said.

The certification was approved by Zero Waste Europe (Mission Zero Academy) in recognition of outstanding achievements in sustainable waste management.

In 2021, through collaboration between Krk’s municipal waste management company Ponikve and the national coordinator for the Zero Waste certification Zero Waste Croatia, the island became a candidate for accreditation.

Krk has achieved the first out of five tiers in the Zero Waste certificate

At the time, local authorities vowed to analyze the composition of mixed municipal waste, introduce volume-based payment, stimulate a reduction in waste generation and an increase in reuse, establish an expert council for waste management and promote home composting, all within five years.

Mission Zero Academy’s auditors conducted the final evaluation.

The implementation of waste management processes in line with the certificate was built upon an already successful waste collection and disposal system. According to Zero Waste Europe, there is room for further progress as Krk has achieved only the first out of five tiers in the Zero Waste certificate.

The municipalities built the necessary infrastructure for effective local waste management

Despite significant pressures related to tourism during the summer months, the municipalities on Krk have achieved a 58% rate of separate waste collection and 22% less mixed waste per capita than the national average. The local authorities on the island rolled out educational and waste reduction measures and built the necessary infrastructure for effective local waste management including a sorting facility, a composting plant, and seven recycling centers.

The results greatly contribute to the high quality of life on the island, residents said in a survey this year, Zero Waste Europe added. Krk plans to further improve waste management.

Jurešić: Recognition of our long-standing efforts

Ivan Jurešić i Marko Košak (photo: Zero Waste Europe)

Ana Golja from the Slovenian organization Ekologi brez meja, an accredited MiZA auditor, invited other Croatian and European municipal authorities as well as entities in the tourism sector to follow Krk’s example.

“The Zero Waste certification is a recognition of our long-standing efforts to improve the waste management system and a motivation to continue working toward the highest possible quality of life and environmental protection on our island,” said Ponikve manager and coordinator for the implementation of Krk’s Zero Waste plan Ivan Jurešić.

Marko Košak from Zero Waste Croatia, coordinator of the country’s Zero Waste municipal network, stressed that Ponikve and the island’s residents are proving that even in challenging tourist areas, excellent results in waste management can be achieved. “We continue to take big steps forward, setting an example for other tourist regions in Croatia and Europe,” he added.

Comments (0)

Be the first one to comment on this article.

Enter Your Comment
Please wait... Please fill in the required fields. There seems to be an error, please refresh the page and try again. Your comment has been sent.

Related Articles

Three cities reviving protests against Rio Tinto lithium project Jadar in Serbia

Three cities reviving protests against Rio Tinto’s lithium project in Serbia

20 July 2025 - Opponents of Rio Tinto's plan to mine and process a lithium and boron ore called jadarite in western Serbia held a protest in Loznica

bih epbih waste incineration tpp tuzla trial

BiH’s power utility EPBiH cancels waste co-incineration trial in Tuzla coal plant

18 July 2025 - Power utility Elektroprivreda Bosne i Hercegovine aborted a waste co-incineration test at its Tuzla coal power plant

Belgrade in focus challenges and solutions for sustainable urban development Ivan Gazdic cms

Belgrade in focus: challenges and solutions for sustainable urban development

17 July 2025 - The author of the feature is Ivan Gazdić, Attorney at Law and Partner at Petrikić & Partneri AOD in cooperation with CMS Reich-Rohrwig Hainz

Successful completion of the WISE serbia mentorship program trust, support, and personal transformation

WISE Serbia mentorship program successfully completed: trust, support, and personal growth

24 June 2025 - The first mentorship program of the WISE Serbia women’s network in sustainable energy, the green economy, and climate action was successfully concluded with an event held in Belgrade