Prague wants to focus on the development of the circular economy
Prague is planning dozens of projects to help develop the so-called circular economy. It focuses on recycling construction and household waste, using rainwater or supporting urban agriculture.
This follows a strategy approved by city councilors today. The Prague leadership has already approved the city’s adaptation strategy to climate change, which has been criticized by the opposition ODS and YES.
The strategy for the transition to a circular economy is divided into four thematic areas related to construction, water management, agriculture and waste. In total, the strategy includes 73 measures to help meet the carbon neutrality commitment. According to the climate plan approved last year, the management of the metropolis wants to achieve this in 2050.
According to Deputy Mayor Petr Hlubuček (STAN), work with waste is crucial, especially in the construction industry, which according to the document brought 74 percent of waste in the metropolis. In the field of construction, therefore, according to the document, the city should create, for example, a material bank, where builders could find information about usable material that would otherwise become waste. According to the document, the city should also support sustainable construction in its public procurement.
In the area of water management, the city wants to implement measures to save water and prevent water leaks, use rainwater for irrigation or use residual heat from wastewater for heating. In the field of agriculture and food, the document talks about the support of urban and suburban organic farming, for example, by using their products in school canteens or the creation of an urban production farm.
In the area of document management, it sets a target of sorting and processing 60 percent of biodegradable municipal waste within four years, which was subsequently used, among other things, at the planned biogas plant. According to the document, there should also be an increase in the so-called re-use centers for people who would waste their waste. According to Hlubučka, the city also wants to renew the “Iron Sunday”, ie the regular collection of metal waste.
The strategy follows the city’s climate strategy, which was approved by representatives at the end of last May. According to her, the city should invest about 230 billion crowns in 69 measures aimed at reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 2030. The municipality wants to get most of the necessary money from European funds. The plan was not supported by the opposition ODS and YES, according to their representatives it is unrealistic and insufficiently prepared. (CTK)