An EU-funded project in the Parseta River basin in north-west Poland is improving the state of the environment by installing selective municipal waste collection points throughout the region.
- 08 August 2019
This project is establishing various selective municipal waste collection points in over 12 towns spread out over the Parsęta River basin. Other municipalities have shown interest in doing the same thing. We are happy with the effects of the project. Clean, ecological places have been established where residents can recycle used items that otherwise would have been left in garages or basements.
The project is minimising the negative impact of municipal waste in the territory of the Union of Towns and Communes of the Parsęta River Basin and neighbouring municipalities. The project has developed waste systems in individual municipalities and promoted selective waste collection among residents.
Collecting and recycling residential waste
To date, three selective municipal waste collection points have been built and equipped with containers in the towns of Postomino, Białogard, and Gościno to promote a more efficient waste management system. Work is already underway to install additional points in the villages of Dygowo, Ustronie Morskie, and Borne Sulinowo. A network of 70 semi-underground household waste sockets has been established in the city of Szczecinek, complementing the existing selective municipal waste collection system. In total, the project aims to install waste collection points in 12 communes across the region.
These recycling points allow for collection of municipal waste from residents all year round. Once collected, it is transferred to dedicated sorting plants and landfills. As part of the project’s updated waste management system, the waste is recovered or disposed of at installations located both within and outside the project area. This is drastically reducing the amount of stored waste.
Raising awareness throughout the region
The project organised 100 two-day educational workshops for children and young adults in the Ecological Education Center in the town of Lipie. The goal was to promote a pro-ecological attitude among participants through educational activities with the use of audio-visual equipment, educational boards and games. After each workshop, participants visited a landfill to see how residential waste is recycled and processed.
As part of the project, a leaflet explaining the importance of selective waste collection and recycling was published and distributed across the region.
The Union of Towns and Communes of the Parsęta River Basin was established in 1992. Since its foundation, it has dealt with water and sewage management and has so far completed and implemented a dozen projects in the fields of water, air and soil protection, environmental education, and waste management.
The construction of waste collection points was the next logical step in helping municipalities organise waste management. It contributes to achieving the project’s general objective of protecting the environment.
Total investment and EU funding
Total investment for the project “Construction of selective municipal waste collection points in the territory of the Związek Miast i Gmin Dorzecza Parsęty (Union of Towns and Municipalities of the Parsęta River Basin)” is EUR 385 880 000, with the EU’s Cohesion Fund contributing EUR 269 280 000 through the “Infrastructure and Environment” Operational Programme for the 2014-2020 programming period. The investment falls under the priority “Environment and resource efficiency”.