Barcelona and Munich have announced that they have signed up to become zero-waste candidate cities. This commitment was announced by Zero Waste Europe and the commitments states that they will implement the five-step process to achieving zero waste. The two cities are also the biggest members of the movement in Europe.
The five steps of the Zero Waste Cities Certification are: expression of interest, commitment, implementation, certification, along with yearly improvements.
The steps were developed around a scorecard system which includes mandatory and points-based criteria.
Following this commitment Barcelona has vowed to work towards reducing solid waste, a 67% separate waste collection rate by 2023 and 427kg of waste generation per capita per year by 2027.
Ada Colau, Mayor of Barcelona said: “Big cities are in debt with their territory, we produce a huge amount of waste and it’s about time we become responsible for it. Barcelona’s commitment to the Zero Waste strategy shows that we do care and that we do act: we aim to be a neutral city and to inspire many others”.
Barcelona would now become one of the biggest European municipalities implementing a zero-waste strategy.
Munich will now start to reduce waste from households per capita per year in the state capital Munich by 15% to 310kg by 2035. The amount of residual waste will be reduced by 35% to 127kg per capita by 2035.
Dieter Reiter, Mayor of Munich said: “Munich is continuing on the path towards zero waste, which I initiated at the end of 2019. I believe it is very important that we, the City of Munich, benefit from others’ experiences as part of a European zero waste network, but also inspire other cities. By signing the Zero Waste Commitment today, we are underscoring our commitment to becoming a city that produces as little waste as possible and conserves resources. Munich is taking on a pioneering role – against wasting resources and for the environment.”
Munich will be the third biggest city that has signed the commitment.
