Over 60% of waste recycled in Arillas, North Corfu

[dimitris]

I wrote the following newsletter for the Arillas Business Association. ... Watch this space !

The results of the work being done at Arillas Green Spot are impressive, according to the letter that the local Business Association sent to the North Corfu Mayor. They maintain that the region is able manage its own waste autonomously and provide data for 2019 along with photos.Corfu has a population of 102,000 and the total annual volume of Urban Solid Waste is 67,000 tons. dividing the total waste by the total population gives us 656kg per person per year.

Arillas has 400 permanent residents producing on average (400 x 656) 262 tons a year.

In 2019 162 tons of waste was recycled in Arillas - with our own self-regulated operation - and didn't go to the landfill. This gives us approximately 63% of waste being recycled, whereas the Corfu Municipalities are struggling to achieve 2% - 15%.

Materials that were recycled:

Organic / compost - 50 tons
Paper / cardboard - 30 tons
Plastic - 20 tons
Metal / electrical appliances - 15 tons
Glass - 50 tons

Total - 165 tons

63% of the total Urban Solid Waste in Arillas

Clothes / books / furniture / batteries / light bulbs / mattresses have not been included.
 

'CLEAN ARILLAS' PILOT PROGRAMME

Implemented in a moderately developed tourist / agricultural area with 400 permanent residents and approximately 1,300 tourist beds.

Result: Exemplary cleanliness in the area and 63% of total waste recycled.

Immediate efficacy: Within a month we reached 63% using our own means - the only contribution from the Municipality was the collection of mixed refuse from the green bins.

BASIC PRINCIPLES

1. Composting at source (in the village) reduces the volume of Urban Solid Waste by 30 - 35%. Direct action at no cost. Residents or the Municipality produce fertilizer for trees and gardens.

2. Recycling at source - A Green Spot in the area collects all the recyclable materials and all large objects. This can immediately collect 30 -45% of the Urban Solid Waste.

3. Managing the green bins (the remainder of waste). Each resident / community / neighbourhood is responsible for the placement and cleaning of green bins.


With a population of 17,000, the Municipality of North Corfu produces approximately 11,000 tons of Urban Solid Waste (17,000 x 656kg) annually.

With 80% recycling (see the example of Arillas with 30 -35% composting and 30 - 45% recycling) there will remain approximately 2,239 tons a year - 6 tons a day or 45,000 tons in 20 years.

There are two ways to manage this remaining waste - 1. Burial 2. Incineration (with modern technology).

Conclusion:

It is possible for the Municipality of North Corfu to manage its Urban Solid Waste autonomously with the prospect of becoming a Zero Waste Municipality and benefitting from the European funding programmes without any difficulty - programmes that give generous support not only to help provide solutions but also to promote North Corfu as a tourist destination worldwide.


'Clean Arillas' Programme coordinators

Dimitris Kourkoulos
Ioannis Papadopoulos


source:enimerosi.com

[M n M]

Dimitris thank you for a number of reasons with other residents pulling together to try to stop all the rubbish in Arillas just been dumped in a mess and the smell in some parts was horrible which caused a number of holiday makers to thing about not coming here again, (I was not one of them).
Now Arillas is a very clean area and it is great to walk around, I know several expats also worked with you, I know it's sadly Martin is no longer with you but I know he loved doing the work and enjoyed living here.
Once again thanks to all persons who do anything in any way to help with keeping Arillas clean and tidy. See you all once again later this year.

[soniaP]

Great news.

[TerryW]

Great news and typical of Dimitris and Arillas to lead the way in recycling. I hope this news gets promoted all over Corfu.

[Jo Wissett]

Bravo!!

[turkeyfoot]

Hi

It was certainly tidier last year and this year looks to be even better.

Well done everbody.

Currently there is a huge clean up of rubbish being undertaken by 1000's of volunteers in the UK.
If people didnt just discard waste and litter etc wherever,  and acted responsibly in the first place, the campaign would not be needed.

Geoff
Ps
Thanks Dimitris for sorting out my sticky post