"El Reto del Reciclaje" will take place on 16 and 19 September in the town of Calp, where citizens can take part in various leisure and educational activities to learn first-hand about the need for proper recycling and its environmental benefits.
The initiative, which also involves the Regional Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development, Climate Change and Ecological Transition and the MARE Consortium, is proposed as a competition between the 35 municipalities of Alicante and 3 associations that are part of the MARE Consortium, and will reward the municipality that succeeds in increasing the results of packaging recycling and improving the contribution of both packaging (cans, bricks and plastic containers) and paper and cardboard packaging.
On 16 and 19 September, the town of Calp will receive a very special visit: the Recycling Commando. This is an awareness and information campaign for citizens to give new life to the packaging deposited in the yellow (cans, beverage cartons and plastic containers) and blue (cardboard and paper containers) containers proposed as a competition between municipalities.
Two price categories of 4,000 euros and 2,000 euros have been set. If the town of Calp wins the competition, the prize will go to the Alicante Cancer Control Association - headquarters of the Calp Municipality.
The campaign is planned according to strict health protection protocols and aims to unveil the myth surrounding recycling and raise awareness of its importance for the environment and the planet. An animation and training team will approach the citizens to make them aware of their obligation to separate and recycle correctly: the cans, beverage cartons and plastic containers into the yellow container and paper and cardboard into the blue container. They will do this by means of entertainment and environmental education campaigns, as well as information and awareness-raising sessions in education centres and for various pre-selected neighbourhood groups.
On the first day of the visit, Wednesday 16 September, a tent called "Reto del Reciclaje" will be set up at 9.00 a.m. at the weekly flea market in Avenida País Valencià. On arrival, visitors will be welcomed by the Mayor, Ana Sala Fernández. The challenge will remain in this location until 2 pm and will organise various events to interact with the population, with the aim of eliminating any doubts about the correct recycling of packaging. On the same day, at 12:00 noon, in the car park next to the Municipal Sports Pavilion "Domingo Crespo", there will be a presentation for the general public.
On Saturday 19 September the challenge will be installed at the weekly market. Two new lectures will be held in Plaza España at 11.00 and 13.00, aimed at all the inhabitants of Calp, with the aim of unravelling the myth of recycling and raising awareness of its importance in protecting the environment and the planet.
The action, which is part of the Valencian Community's Packaging Action Plan for 2016-2020, is promoted by the Regional Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development, Climate Change and Ecological Transition and Ecoembes, the non-profit environmental organisation that coordinates packaging recycling in Spain, in collaboration with the waste consortium MARE.
The campaign started on 9 September in El Campello and will continue in Xàbia until 1 October 2020. A vehicle that will mark the campaign, "Furgoneta del Reciclaje", will visit each of the selected municipalities in the Consorcio Mare administrative area: Alfas del Pi, Altea, Benissa, Calpe, El Campello, La Nucia, Pego, Teulada, La Vila Joiosa and Xàbia
"Reto del Reciclaje" is proposed as a competition between the municipalities in the consortium to increase the total contribution for the yellow tonne by at least 15% in the two months following the campaign period, comparing these contributions with those for the same period in 2019. The prize will take the form of a cash award to a pre-selected NGO. There are currently communities with high recycling rates, where growth will always be more difficult to achieve than in communities with lower recycling rates. For this reason, two prize categories will be established with the same participation dynamics.
About Ecoembes
Ecoembes is the non-profit environmental organisation that coordinates the recycling of plastic packaging, cans and beverage cartons (yellow container) and cardboard and paper packaging (blue container) in Spain.
In 2019, more than 1.5 million tonnes of plastic packaging, cans, beverage cartons and paper and cardboard were recycled throughout Spain. This has resulted in numerous environmental benefits, such as the avoidance of 1.67 million tonnes of CO2 emissions - the equivalent of all emissions from coal-fired power stations in Spain for two months - or the saving of 6.37 million MWh. Likewise, 20.74 million cubic metres of water were saved.