"Let's Clean Up Europe" on 10 May
22 Apr 2014 02:30 PM
Every year,
millions of tonnes of litter end up in Europe's streets,
oceans, beaches, forests and natural areas. And every year millions of
Europeans get out in their neighborhoods to clean up in voluntary actions.
"Let's Clean up Europe" is an initiative that aims to encourage
more such actions, to raise awareness about the scale of the litter and waste
problems, and to encourage changes in behaviour. The event is being
coordinated by the European Week for Waste Reduction (EWWR).
Environment Commissioner Janez
Potočnik said: "Civic clean up movements are growing across
Europe and we want to make them fell part of a European event. We have put
together a network of national contact points in 21 countries to let people
know what is going on in their neighbourhood, and what they can do to help.
It's a hands-on initiative, so let's get our boots and gloves on. We
all want to live in clean neighbourhoods, so together Let's Clean Up
Europe."
A number of clean-up campaigns
have been organised in Europe in recent years to tackle the litter
problem.“Let’s Clean Up Europe!” will bring together these
initiatives in a Europe-wide clean-up event to take place on the same day all
over the continent, reaching as many citizens as possible.
‘Let’s Clean Up
Europe!’ is a truly bottom-up event that aims to inform
and mobilise the public into cleaning up their environment for
themselves. Experience shows that people are often surprised at how much waste
is being generated and dumped in their neighbourhood. And litter can
be valuable. Paper, glass, metals, and plastic can all be used again or
recycled if collected. This reduces environmental impact, creates economic
opportunities and jobs, by helping to push Europe towards a more circular
economy.
The Commission is promoting the
event, but the clean-ups are truly independent, local and citizen-led. In
many cases local authorities, NGOs businesses and schools will be getting
involved or coordinating actions. Events are taking place in 15 EU Member
States, as well as in Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Norway, Serbia, and
Turkey. To find a local action in your Member State, see the website of
the national organizer in your Member
State.
Background
"Let's Clean up
Europe" is a LIFE project coordinated by the Association of Cities and
Regions for Recycling and sustainable Resource management, the organisation
that is also responsible for the European Week for Waste Reduction. A set of
communication tools has been developed by the organisers, and will be made
available for all participants via the coordinators.
In 2012, Let’s Do It!
World, based in Estonia, coordinated a World Clean-up 2012 action, which
mobilized 7 million volunteers in 84 one-day clean-up actions in Asia, Africa,
North America, South America and Europe. Similar activities followed in 2013.
The initiatives are primarily based on networking volunteers through social
networks, and also include fund raising and sponsorships.
Surfrider Foundation Europe
(http://www.surfrider.eu/en/presentation/our-story.html) mobilises 1500
volunteers, 10000 members, about 40 local chapters, and more than 40 000
supporters. Its beach clean-ups are now complemented by actions on lakes and
rivers. Surfrider started in 1984 in Malibu, California, where surfers aimed to
protect their favourite surf spots from local pollution. It has been active in
Europe since 1990.The European Commission believes that public awareness and
changing attitudes to waste are important in delivering the objectives of
European waste legislation. Waste prevention and waste management are focus
areas for the Commission in 2014, and it will review waste recycling and
landfill targets this summer as part of a wider circular economy
package.
For more
information:
Let's Clean Up Europe
website:
http://www.letscleanupeurope.eu/
Factsheet on the
event:
http://www.ewwr.eu/sites/default/files/Factsheet%20-%20Let%27s%20Clean%20
Up%20Europe.pdf
The European Environment Agency
has also launched a marine litter app that can be downloaded from Google Play:
see http://www.eea.europa.eu/themes/coast_sea/marine-litterwatch
span>
For more information on EU waste
legislation, see:
http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/index.htm