Gabrovo will test smart waste management

While striving to reduce it in volume

Gabrovo Municipality is preparing a pilot project aimed at more efficient and intelligent waste management, the local administration announced earlier this week. The project is set to improve the quality of separately collected and biodegradable waste, as well as to promote home composting and reduce waste generation overall.

Intelligent systems direct efforts where needed

The pilot project, developed in the city of one hundred thousand inhabitants, has an expected cost of BGN 390,936 (almost 200,000 euros), provided via a non-refundable grant, under the Operational Program "Environment" 2014-2020, through the European Regional Development Fund. It envisages the construction of two new sites for underground garbage collection in the central part of the city, with controlled individual access.

Furthermore, the containers will be equipped with a system of sensors for data transmission, and the separately collected waste will be measured by a specialized weighing machine. The data will be used for analytical and forecasting purposes and will make it possible for waste collection to be carried out based on the actually accumulated waste. In the future, this would prevent containers from overflowing and collecting teams from travelling to points that do not need to be emptied.

In addition, the construction of four sites for shared composting is planned - in a kindergarten, school, residential area and recreation centre. The project will allow for a deposit vending system for plastic bottles and aluminium cans to be built for the first time in Gabrovo, the municipality informed.

Finally, a wide-ranging public campaign is previewed to demonstrate the benefits of separate and intelligent waste collection and to promote a responsible approach to limiting waste production.

The pilot project is another step that Gabrovo is taking to modernize waste management. Earlier this year, the Bulgarian municipality acquired four new sites for underground waste collection (to reach a total of six), which contribute to a cleaner public environment. In addition, separate waste collection is mandatory in Gabrovo.