The project

The overall aim of the LIFE PAVEtheWAySTE project is to facilitate the implementation of the Waste Framework Directive in remote areas, by enabling local and regional authorities to improve their municipal waste recycling performance and thus pave the way to high resource efficiency. This will be achieved through the development and application of an economically viable solid waste management plan, based on the demonstration of an innovative system for the fine separation of municipal solid waste (MSW) at source

The innovative system will be able to sort and treat different types of recyclables and organic waste in a way to directly recover end-products of high quality and purity. In the course of the project, specific companies activated in the recycling industry will be engaged in order to ensure that the end-products will satisfy market specifications and that the recovered materials are exploited.

The project implementation area comprises of two Greek remote areas, namely the Municipality of Naxos and Small Cyclades Islands and the Municipality of Ancient Olympia. In addition, a major contribution to the demonstration character of the project will be provided by the Spanish project partner (Valladolid, Castilla y León area) with the provision of feedback and R&D-based knowledge for the successful replication and transfer of the developed Integrated Solid Waste Management System (ISWM) and its findings, not only in other remote Municipalities of Greece, but also in a follower Municipality of Spain with similar characteristics (remote areas).

The project was initiated in September 2015 and has a duration of 40 months. The Municipality of Naxos and Small Cyclades Islands in South Aegean (Greece) is the coordinator of the project, while the project partners are the Municipality of Ancient Olympia in Western Greece, the National Technical University of Athens (Greece) and the Fundación CARTIF (Spain).

The project is co-financed by the LIFE Programme for the Environment and Climate Change (2014-2020).

The specific objectives of the project are:

  • Establishment of an EU integrated and replicable innovative system for source separation and treatment of MSW in remote areas in Greece and
  • RSU deal originally avoiding waste collection, transportation and treatment plants recovery facilities
  • Recovering the maximum possible resources to generate more than five streams of clean materials, while contributing to the diversion of waste reaching landfill
  • Inform and educate citizens on how to separate different types of recyclable materials through the installation of innovative prototypes, operated by specially trained staff
  • Evaluate the quality and marketability of the final products in relation to the specifications of local / regional market and specific industry standards
  • Facilitate recycling of the material and improve the quality of materials recovered through better waste separation and processing methods
  • Make waste recycling an economically attractive option in remote areas where transport costs are predominant (50% reduction of waste management costs)
  • Eradicate sending to landfill and more importantly, illegal practices such as waste management iuncontrolado spill, currently applied in remote areas
  • To provide an integrated approach to implementing the objectives of the policy and legislation of the Union in the field of resource efficiency through sustainable waste management approach in remote areas