The Union of Municipalities expresses a strong reaction to the Government's intention to proceed with the imposition of a waste landfill tax, warning that the cost will inevitably be passed on to the citizens. At the same time, they talk about the responsibilities of the state in the management of infrastructure. The issue was raised after a meeting held at the Ministry of Agriculture, as part of the working group for the implementation of "Pay as I throw".
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the conference of the European Committee of the Regions in Nicosia, the Mayor of Amathus and head of the Union of Municipalities' working group on waste, Kyriakos Xydias, said that at the meeting on "Pay as I Throw" at the end of last week, they were informed of the intention to impose the fee.
"At this meeting, instead of going through the serious problems of the lack of infrastructure to proceed with our obligations regarding the sorting of waste at the source, we were informed that the Ministry, citing the Recovery Fund, will take a proposal to the Cabinet to impose a landfill tax on waste," he said.
He stressed that the Union of Municipalities does not consent to the imposition of the fee, noting that the Ministry itself manages the waste unit in Pentakomo, where today 80% is buried, while the Ministry itself should have taken care to do comprehensive management to bury 20%.
He added that the municipalities will react, noting that the "failures of the Ministry" cannot be imposed as taxation on all waste on the Municipalities and consequently on the citizens, because the Municipalities will be forced to pass on this taxation to the citizens.
"We will react strongly," he warned.
As he said, the issue will be raised with the Executive Committee of the Union of Municipalities.
"I have specific suggestions on how the Union of Municipalities will proceed. We will discuss them in the Executive and inform you," he said.
At the same time, he sent a clear message to the Government that the Union of Municipalities in no way consents to the imposition of this taxation.
Mr. Xydias also noted that the Government's planning for waste management will lead to cost increases.
"What the Department of Environment does not do is to come out and inform the citizens that this planning will skyrocket the cost of waste management," he said.
He added that it is a tax that goes into the total waste and will really be a very big burden on each household.
Mr. Xydias called on the state to assume its responsibilities and asked those who plan to come out with boldness and say that their plans lead to increases.
"Neither the bad mayors nor the local government reforms are to blame. Don't load them elsewhere. Really, let everyone take their responsibility," he said.
Vyras: The end is catastrophic for the Municipalities
For his part, the President of the Union of Municipalities, Andreas Vyras, stated that municipalities cannot afford additional taxes.
"We cannot afford additional costs. The cost we get for each ton in the units is already very high. You realize, this end will be catastrophic for the Municipalities," he said.
The result, as he said, is "to come to the rescue again, the local government to look bad, to appear to impose taxes for something for which we are not responsible".
"We cannot afford it, but we cannot afford it politically for something that is not our responsibility to come now to take on this additional taxation," he stressed
In relation to the "Pay As You Throw" program, Mr. Vyras said that it could only help if it was implemented correctly.
However, he warned that without preparation it could lead to increases. He explained that as things stand today, there can be no talk of implementing the "Pay As You Throw" program, since basic provisions have not been resolved and have not been settled.
Regarding the program, Mr. Xydias said that when they designed this system, they said that they would take the organic fraction from the waste, which has value. Today, he added, they have not created a single unit and instead they are told to make double routes, to separate the organic and to pay for the organic gate fee.
He described both the gate fee and the landfill tax as unacceptable, which he described as the result of "poor management".
CNA
