On Tuesday, the Walloon Minister for the Environment, Carlo Di Antonio indicated, in a communiqué, that 24 municipalities have been accepted to participate in a can recycling pilot project. The project, which will be started in September, is targeting cans abandoned in the countryside. Each article reported will be eligible for a free gift of five cents to spend in local shops.
For two years, citizens and organisations from the 24 participating municipalities will be able to bring back cans abandoned in public. Two systems will be tested in an alternative and progressive way: automated recycling using a specific machine and manual recycling via municipal staff. After a year, the two scenarios will be assessed and at that point “potential adjustments for the remainder of the project” will be decided.
As alluded to above each can will be eligible for a free gift of five cents, granted in the form of a voucher to redeem in local partner shops. The communiqué stresses that the price of a can will not be altered. “This free gift, given as part of the pilot project, will be financed by the packaging sector.”
Moreover, the project is only targeting cans found on public roads. Those consumed at home should still be thrown in recycling bags or taken to a recycling centre.
The 24 municipalities accepted for the project are Perwez, Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve, La Hulpe, Tubize, Eghezée, Fernelmont, Anhée, Yvoir, Neufchâteau, Bastogne, Étalle, Meix-devant-Virton, Büllingen, Bütgenbac, Amay, Nandrin, Donceel, Fexhe-le-Haut-Clocher, Frameries, Dour, Chièvres, Frasnes-lez-Anvaing, Courcelles and Les Bons Villers. An assessment of the impact upon the blue recycling bag and public hygiene will be carried out before, during and after the operation.
The Brussels Times
