August 24, 2020 - In Berane, so-called "green islands" have been set up in eight different locations; these are the first eco-points for selective waste collection of this type in Montenegro, stated project manager Maja Pešić, who announced that soon, as part of the project, the city will boast 42 new containers.
The "Green Islands" project is a cross-border cooperation project funded by the European Union, and implemented by the Municipality of Berane as leading applicant, working in cooperation with partners Caritas, VIS and the municipality of Malësi e Madhe, the local government reports.
"The goal of the project is to improve the state of the environment, by promoting better waste management in Berane. Waste management problems are highly visible in less developed countries such as Montenegro. While on the path towards the EU, we are achieving our goal of improving the environment through projects, media campaigns, and learning from best practices," said Maja Pešić, project manager and assistant within the Secretariat for Projects and Investments of the Municipality of Berane. She explained that municipal waste collection and management is a very specialized activity that depends on many factors, a variety of different actors (competent institutions, the public) and the adoption and implementation of strategies and laws.
“The "Green Islands" project envisages the setting up of eco-points at eight locations in Berane as one of its activities. In a way, green islands are a novelty not only for our city, but also for the whole of Montenegro. The design and conceptual plan of the green islands was prepared by a company that deals with architecture and construction. After that, the locations were determined in line with the detailed urban plan of the municipality and then a solution for the creation of the island itself was provided. The green islands consist of a closed frame that contains four types of containers and a hot waste bin. In addition, their locations have been chosen and the landscaping carried out by a professional company, working with a horticultural engineer and his team to deliver and implement the project on the ground," said Pešić, adding:
"I would like to mention that separate to this project, work is being carried out on a recycling yard and sorting plant project in Rudeš, and this will be used by our municipality (the contract has already been signed with the contractor and supervisory team). With this system of green islands as well as the two-bin system (dry and wet waste) which again through this project was implemented in 1000 households, to which we distributed two thousand bins, we will "close the circle" of waste management in our city. In addition to green islands and the two-bin household waste system, the project envisages the installation of 42 two-colour containers in Berane during the month of September, for the public to dispose of two types of waste separately (wet and dry)," said the head of the project implementation team.
“The project began in April 2018, and the project is planned and contracted for completion at the end of October this year. Before then we still have to complete several activities, but also to present a lot of what has already been implemented,” concluded Marija Pešić.
HRB
