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Door-to-door commercial waste collection service begins in Es Pujols

residus3The Formentera Office of Environment has put in place a new public service: door-to-door commercial rubbish collection at restaurants and nightlife locales in Es Pujols town centre, specifically those located at Plaça d'Europa, Avinguda de Miramar and Sa Roca Plana, S'Espardell, Cartagena roads and the alleys that connect them.

The initiative, unanimously approved at the March plenary session, came somewhat overdue, considering it deals primarily with the island's most popular tourist destination, Es Pujols. The area in question hosts, in a vast majority, locales such as restaurants, shows, and nightlife establishments that are patronised by pedestrian traffic. These businesses offer their services during nighttime hours and generate considerable amounts of commercial waste.

The need for this new addition to the public rubbish service has its origins in the recent changes to the area's waste collection necessities. The enormous quantity of trash generated during the summer months routinely brings collection to a halt and bags full of rubbish are piled alongside waste bins, with the negative image that such a sight leaves.

residus2For this reason, it was thought opportune to improve the collection service during summer months, implementing a new, door-to-door collection service. The effected area was until now unable to benefit from the normal, vehicle-based collection service, since service vehicles are unable to operate on the pedestrian walkways in that area. This made the provision of the waste collection service quite difficult, as was likewise the case with solid waste, service providers being unable to access the area with the desired level of efficiency.

The service began 1 June and will continue through 30 September. The general collection service for commercial waste implies door-to-door collection of the different categories of rubbish, basically limited to non-hazardous and domestic material. The various types of rubbish are collected at the established frequency directly from those establishments registered with the service. Participating establishments include restaurants and bars, of large- and small-scale, offices and market vendors, as well as establishments from the rest of the service sector. The service oversees both cleaning and collection of waste material from the collection area.

residus1Participating locales must deposit waste into bins of 80, 120 or 240 litres. The collection service will begin at 12 midnight and will continue until all the rubbish containers are emptied, anticipated for 6:30 am. Collection itineraries will service the entirety of pedestrian walkways in Es Pujols. Different trajectories will be established which take into account the different closing times of businesses.

Collection will be effectuated with a specially-adapted collection vehicle of small dimensions, operated – as a matter of necessity – by only one person. It is anticipated that it will need to have dimensions of 2 cubic metres. The implementation of the new door-to-door commercial waste collection service will provide a particularly beneficial service to its clients.

The nightlife and restaurant sector is the sector which has the lowest rates of recycling, and it has been previously demonstrated that the application of a door-to-door collection service contributes to an increase in recycling.

Since the beginning of this year, the Formentera Office of Environment has carried out actions that contribute to improving the island's image. The goal is to present an image of maximum cleanliness for the first visitors and tourists that the island receives, especially those stopping over in the most tourist-oriented town on the island.