SIRCLES in Italy rewards 4 municipalities for their involvement in organic waste management
On July 6th in Rome, the 30th edition of Comuni Riciloni (“Municipalities Recyclers”) organised by Legambiente, the most influential environmental organisation of Italy, took place. Since 1994 Comuni Riciloni awards at national level the excellence of local communities, public administrations and citizens who have achieved the best results in waste collection and management. Every year Consorzio Italiano Compostatori (CIC), SIRCLES project’s partner in Italy, as well as other important associations and consortiums of the waste sector, give special awards to the municipalities who have managed to reach particular results in terms of municipal bio-waste collection and recycling into valuable products, such as compost.
This year CIC, decided to award to the municipalities of Alberobello, Locorotondo, Noci and Putignano, located in Apulia region and involved in the activities of SIRCLES project in Italy. With this award CIC intended to praise the municipalities for having sensitized their citizens on the issue of separate bio-waste collection and for demonstrating the positive impact which the circular economy may have on the territory - in environmental, social and working terms.
In fact, thanks to SIRCLES project in Italy, 7 persons at risk of social exclusion were trained to become specialists in the organic waste sector. As "ambassadors of sustainability", they conducted meetings, surveys and awareness-raising activities aimed at citizens, commercial users (especially in the HO.RE.CA. sector), municipal administrations and schools. This way it was possible to photograph the habits of separate collection of organic waste and provide advice to future initiatives to improve the quality of the bio-waste supply chain.
Lella Miccolis, the president of CIC, explains: “SIRCLES is an important project because it shows the numerous opportunities linked to the circular economy and, in particular, to the organic waste sector. We have decided to reward the municipalities involved to enhance their role, thank them for having believed in this activity from the start and to encourage them to improve themselves starting from the results obtained through interviews with citizens and the commercial sector.”