The Project implements a significant portion of the Epirus Region’s Regional Planning for Waste Management (PESDA), in accordance with the National Planning for Waste Management (ESDA) and European legislation.
It reduces the Environmental footprint of the Region’s waste management and provides environmental benefits such as:
- It complements Waste Management with the management-at-source systems that are to be developed.
- It maximises recycling and composting.
- It promotes the production of green energy.
- It responds to citizens’ environmental sensitivities by consolidating a new ecological and environmental attitude to waste management.
It complements the sorting-at-source system for recyclable materials (blue bins), and the Project contributes substantially to the achievement of national recycling goals.
The Epirus Waste Processing Unit (WPU) will receive and process mixed municipal solid waste and pre-sorted biowaste (source-sorted organic materials). It consists of two main sub-units: the Mechanical Sorting Unit (MSU) and the Biological Processing Unit (BPU).
The Epirus WPU’s maximum annual capacity is 105,000 tons. The WPU achieves recovery of a total of 17,000 tons of recyclable materials per year, generating 10,800 kWh/yr of Green Energy – enough to meet the needs of 3,000 families. This eliminates 12,000 tons/yr of CO2 production, concurrently producing – from the sorting and processing of the organic fraction of waste – 25,000 tons/yr of type A compost, which has a variety of applications in soil restoration, roadworks, etc. High-quality compost is produced from the processing of pre-sorted biowaste and is used in agriculture for improving soil and preventing desertification, while also reducing use of the chemical fertilisers to which they are an alternative.
The WPU diverts from landfill and utilises at least 65% of the biodegradable fraction of incoming waste and 60% of incoming recyclable materials.
The project is co-funded by NSRF resources.