The recent EC directive on single-use plastic products (SUP) requires governments to take action to reduce or ban certain SUP to increase plastic waste prevention (PWP). EIT Climate-KIC portfolio lacks applications of the SUP directive that engage experiments with local government citizens and private operators. In terms of innovation, in Europe cities lack of governance systems to enhance reusable solutions adoption to drive behavior on PWP and abandon SUP products.
Touristic and coastal areas would benefit from a governance system able to target both local communities and tourists, throughout interventions involving foodservice operators, including those located nearby the sea that might impact also on marine littering.
In 2021, the project will focus on consolidating, test and implement the protocol methodology developed in 2021 to reduce and eliminate Single-Use-Plastic items in the beverage industry, based on a co-creation approach involving local authorities, businesses and citizens. The project will also set and implement local experiments proposing alternatives to SUP uses in café/bars, at community level in:
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Italy, cities of Emilia-Romagna region, located along the Adriatic coast and of touristic relevance
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Greece, the island of Corfu, in the Ionian seas
The objective of the project is to set replicable protocols voluntary for free single-use plastics food packaging adoption enforced at the city level, for several types of foodservice operators (FO) (cafes, restaurants, foods stores, hotel, beach facilities). The project will provide FO with an inventory of innovative solutions based on environmental and financial criteria.
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