{"id":385891,"date":"2022-07-14T06:30:00","date_gmt":"2022-07-14T04:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/innovationorigins.com\/?p=385891"},"modified":"2022-07-14T06:30:00","modified_gmt":"2022-07-14T04:30:00","slug":"food-waste-separation-can-be-done-with-little-investments-thats-what-a-lithuanian-city-is-showing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/en\/food-waste-separation-can-be-done-with-little-investments-thats-what-a-lithuanian-city-is-showing\/","title":{"rendered":"Food waste separation can be done with minor investment – that\u2019s what a Lithuanian city is showing\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Read more about the countries in this project<\/span><\/a><\/div>
More about Lithuania<\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Separating food waste is a relatively new practice in Lithuania. Dealing with it is one of the hardest tasks for municipalities – particularly in the early stages. Since 2019, as per the national waste management plan, cities with over 50,000 inhabitants were required to start implementing a separate collection system for this waste. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recycling food waste is also essential in order to reduce emissions. Burying organic trash in landfills emits methane – one of the most hazardous greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Measurements from Eurostat<\/a> show the progress Lithuania has made in recycling municipal waste. From no recycling in 2004, the Baltic state reached a 45 percent level in 2020. While separation works in several West European countries, the same can\u2019t be said about the eastern states, where it is still taking the first steps. Giving new life to organic waste is also one of the courses of actions to be taken. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMunicipalities tend to be resistant. Such a transition doesn\u2019t only entail investment in equipment and infrastructure, but a lot of work needs to done on changing people\u2019s habits too,\u201d explains Domantas Tracevi\u010dius from V\u0161\u012e \u017diedin\u0117 ekonomika<\/a> – a circular economy NGO. <\/p>\n\n\n

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Scanner against food waste can help curb CO2 emissions<\/div>
In the fight against food waste, a scanner developed by start-up OneThird can help predict the shelf life of fruit and vegetables. <\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n

Adapting facilities<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Six cities were involved in this first phase of the initiative, with Alytus – the smallest of them – becoming a model for the bigger ones as well as other towns outside of the country that still have to undergo the transition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat they did is very simple. Their Microbiological Treatment Plant – MBT – was new, and instead of building a new plant, they simply retrofitted it, adopting the existing equipment to separate waste, \u201d says Tracevi\u010dius.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Domantas Tracevi\u010dius<\/h3>

Waste management and circular economy expert<\/h4>

He founded the climate NGO V\u0161\u012e “\u017diedin\u0117 ekonomika”. <\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In his opinion, that\u2019s the way that could help other small municipalities to transition. \u201cIt is just a matter of adding some tunnels for collecting this kind of waste separately. I personally advocated for this solution and the government gave it consideration, as now it is in its implementation phase,\u201d he adds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Lithuanian government embarked on a plan for an investment project, with funding – up to five million euros per plant – for upgrading the facilities, depending on the size and the amount of waste they can process. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How is food waste processed? <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Biological treatment facilities can manage waste in two ways, either by composting it or by anaerobic digestion<\/em>. This latter process comprising compressing waste in a container with no oxygen. This way, waste is broken down by microorganisms; the remaining substance can be reused as fertilizer. What’s more, methane emissions can be captured to generate biogas that can be used as a source of energy. Processing this waste is thus a key aspect to shifting towards a circular economy model.<\/p>\n\n\n\n