Environmental waste management organisation Algar is implementing a pilot project called called Recicla+ in the municipalities of Loulé (Santa Catarina and Goncinha), Lagos (Montinhos da Luz) and Faro (Quinta do Eucalipto and Gambelas), for door-to-door collection of recyclable waste, estimating the distribution of around 4,450 recyclable waste bins.
The objective is to increase the percentage of recycled packaging, helping to achieve the packaging waste recovery targets set by the European Union and reducing the amount of urban waste deposited in landfills.
In places where door-to-door containers are being distributed, community recycling points will no longer be available, which will be relocated, in the respective municipality, in previously agreed locations, between the respective Municipalities and Algar.
The project, which aims to collect urban and domestic waste, such as paper/cardboard, plastic/metal and glass packaging, started in the last quarter of 2021. It involves 3 containers being distributed per dwelling, with lids in different colours, so that families can place them at their doorstep, and the waste is collected on specific days for each type of bin.
The project started in areas mostly composed of single-family houses. The initiative includes information, awareness and distribution of recycling containers for each of the approximately 1,500 dwellings involved.
To guarantee a better efficiency in the quality of the use of waste, it will be placed, without bags, directly in the containers. If incorrectly placed waste in the buckets is detected, its collection will not be carried out and the citizen will be informed of the respective reason, through a sticker stuck on the container.
Each container is associated with accommodation, through the numbering of equipment, which in the future will make it possible to measure the amount of selective waste produced and, eventually, translate into savings on the bill, rewarding those who best manage their waste.
The project included the acquisition of 4 vehicles for the selective collection of containers and for the disposal of packaging waste, supported by funds from the European Union. The total eligible investment of 384,360 euros is 85% co-financed by the Operational Program for Sustainability and Efficiency in the Use of Resources (POSEUR) within the scope of Portugal 2020, through the Cohesion Fund.
Algar added that the Recicla+ project will be permanently monitored in the three municipalities. The campaign also has the support of Sociedade Ponto Verde, in the context of raising awareness among the population, through 80% funding of 45,060 euros, which makes a total of 36,048 euros.
