The Basque Government sets itself the objective of reducing the rate of waste generation by 10%

The Basque Government has approved this Wednesday its first Plan of Circular Economy and Bioeconomy of Euskadi 2024, which aims, among other objectives, to reduce the rate of waste generation by 10% within three years.

The plan will have a budget of 45 million euros13 of which will come from European Next Generation funds (the rest, 32 million, will be provided by the executive himself), with the possibility of increasing the amount if more aid arrives from Europe.

The Minister of Economic Development, Sustainability and the Environment, Arantxa Tapia, explained that with this program, the Basque Country aims to place itself “among the European leaders” in this field. In addition to the approval of the plan, the executive has also given the green light to a aid program, whose term will open on October 21 for local entities and companies. The grants will be financed precisely with Next Generation funds, and will support new circular and waste management projects.

Among other areas, separate collections will be promoted, especially bio-waste, and existing ones will be improved. The construction of specific facilities for the treatment of separately collected bio-waste or of new preparation facilities for reuse and recycling of other separately collected waste streams will also be subsidized.

The project addresses the need to promote the creation of new, more circular business models, innovate in materials, processes and products, prolong the shelf life of the products, reduce the consumption of raw materials and the generation of waste, promote a more circular consumption model, reduce food waste, promote the more efficient use of plastics, increase reuse, recycling and recovery of waste, and increase the use of secondary raw materials.

As Tapia explained, these are some of the principles on which the Basque Green Deal is based to promote an “inclusive and sustainable” development model. The program has as its axis the bioeconomía, comprising the sectors of the economy that use renewable biological resources from land and sea (such as crops, forests, animals and microorganisms) to produce food, materials and energy, combining the sustainable management of natural resources with new technological solutions to create “a new generation of products that replace what we produce today with fossil fuels.”

The plan includes 11 lines of action, among which stand out, creating new sustainable materials, ecodesign of products and buildings, encouraging circular consumption, avoiding food waste or the consumption of plastics. Likewise, 53 specific actions are contemplated aimed at promoting the Basque Country’s transition towards “a more efficient economy in the use of resources through innovation oriented towards a new production and consumption model”.

75% of plastic packaging, recyclable

The plan also provides for the establishment of voluntary agreements with “key” agents to ensure that 75% of the plastic packaging consumed is recyclable and eliminate single-use and non-recyclable plastic bags.

It also includes the incorporation and development of new more efficient waste treatment technologies and the promotion of an advanced waste management sector in the Basque Country.