Filenews 11 December 2024
The postponement of the "Pay as You Throw" system is proposed by the Secretary General of the C.C. of AKEL, Stefanos Stefanou, in a letter sent today to the Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment.
As Mr. Stefanou says, citizens will sort at source, they will pay more, but the waste will continue to be buried. He believes that postponing the launch of the PDO is a one-way street because, as he notes, apart from the increased cost for citizens, there is also a huge risk that Cyprus will become a large garbage dump.
The letter is reproduced in full:
"As of 1 January 2025, the "Pay As You Throw" (PDO) system with a prepaid bag must be implemented, gradually on a nationwide basis. This is the commitment undertaken by the Republic of Cyprus towards the European Union. This commitment cannot be implemented for very important basic reasons.
First, the Local Government Authorities that will take responsibility for implementing the Programme do not have the appropriate infrastructure or staff. While there was an assurance that the Local Government Authorities will be provided with funds for personnel and the purchase of the necessary equipment, today the Local Government Authorities are asked to cover with their own resources the needs that exist, which they do not have.
Secondly, while the aim of the PDO is to significantly reduce the cost of garbage, based on the feasibility studies carried out so far, the cost to consumers will increase, according to calculations, from 30% to 60%.
Thirdly, due to the problems in the operation of the Pentakomo and Koshi OEDA, waste is not properly managed, both recyclable and organic. In other words, citizens will sort at source, pay more, but the waste will continue to be buried.
Finally, important issues concerning the waste management system, of which the PDO programme is a constituent part, are outstanding.
Specifically:
- There is no plan to transfer responsibility to the EDAs for waste management to be done in three years at the latest.
- There is no planning to solve the problems in the Pentakomo and Koshi OEDA, what will happen with the Pafos treatment plant and generally what the overall planning for the OEDA includes.
- The issue of the completion of the Pancyprian Green Points Network has not been resolved.
In light of the above, I believe that postponing the launch of the PDO is a one-way street because, apart from the increased cost for citizens, there is also a huge risk that Cyprus will become a large garbage dump. This is because if the system is implemented piecemeal, there will be problems of dumping waste from one area to another.
We are at your disposal for any clarification you need."
