The problem of dirty streets and negligent disposal of waste are problems that are often pointed out in Podgorica, and the parties, in anticipation of the upcoming local elections on September 29, promise to solve them by replacing ordinary underground containers, raising the awareness of citizens, building the largest recycling center in the region, increasing the number bins and containers, by improving the garbage collection system, containers that use a sensor to indicate when they need to be emptied....
However, most of them do not have a precise plan containing costs, deadlines and financing methods for this problem either.
"Vijesti" asked all newspaper holders (13 of them) how, in what time frame and how much money (and from where) they would solve the problem of dirty streets and negligent disposal of waste in Podgorica.
The answers were sent by the leader of the list of the Movement Europe now and the Democrats Saša Mujović, Jelena Borovinić Bojović (For the future of Podgorica), Nermin Abdić (DPS), Boris Mugoša (European Union), Ilija Mugoš (Party of European Progress), Srdjan Peric (Reversal), Vuk Kadic (Movement Forward) i Stanko Đuričić (Montenegro civil action).
Saša Mujović said that there is a plan on how to fix the difficult situation and he believes that he will start implementing it soon.
"The recovery plan implies better payment for the services provided, restructuring of the company, increasing efficiency and finally reducing the huge debts that "Čistoća" has. Only in this way can we make additional investments in mechanization, employ more people to maintain hygiene and make Podgorica much cleaner," Mujović assessed.
He emphasized that the establishment of communal order is one of the biggest challenges, not only in Podgorica or Montenegro, but also beyond, but that he is sure that with the existing capacities, the work of "Čistoća" could have been much better.
"The city administration was financially generous and provided funds for work and payment of wages. Also, our street heroes, employees who care and clean our city deserve the deepest respect. "Unfortunately, I would say that the administration failed, which, truth be told, inherited a very bad situation and again a huge number of unnecessarily employed workers," said Mujović.
Jelena Borovinić Bojović said that they have the ambition to make Podgorica one of the cleanest cities in the region.
"And we are sure that we can achieve it. First, we have to unblock the development of Podgorica and continue all the projects we started in this year and start new ones. Attempts by the forces of the past to block Podgorica with a continuous crisis and postpone the future will not succeed," said Borovinić Bojović.
She pointed out that in the previous period, as a responsible public administration, they did everything in their power to suppress and solve this problem.
"Through the Secretariat for Communal Affairs, we launched a project to collect glass waste from catering establishments, through which over 70 tons of glass were collected. This and other projects we are planning, which are related to the cleanliness of the city, clearly show our determination to solve this key problem systematically", said Borovinić Bojović.
He pointed out that the Secretariat, in agreement with the company Deponija, planned a series of activities and projects to solve the problem of careless waste.
Exchange of containers, recycling center
Nermin Abdić said that, in order to raise the level of environmental hygiene in Podgorica, they plan to purchase modern equipment that will enable citizens to dispose of the waste they produce in their households in a legally prescribed manner.
"We will continue what we started, replacing ordinary underground containers. The advantages of this way of collecting waste are multiple, with one underground container we replace a group of three to five containers with a volume of 1,1 m3. By disposing of waste in this way, a higher level of hygiene is achieved, without waste scattered around the container and unpleasant odors," said Abdić.
He said that efforts will be made to raise the awareness of citizens, so that they are familiar with the proper disposal of waste.
"In addition to all of the above, we will facilitate communication with them, through applications that will provide them with information about the accompanying communal infrastructure - recycling yards, mobile recycling yard, locations of semi-underground and above-ground containers," said Abdić.
Boris Mugoša said that their program envisages a comprehensive solution to the problem of waste. "First, we will build a modern recycling center, which will be the largest in the region. This center will enable efficient processing of different types of waste and their reuse, which will significantly reduce the amount of waste that ends up in landfills," said Mugoša.
He emphasized that, in parallel, they plan to work on strengthening communal services, which will be better equipped and organized, so that the streets of the city are clean and organized.
"We plan to introduce educational campaigns to show citizens the importance of proper waste disposal. We will also invest in new containers and infrastructure for waste separation, which will facilitate recycling and reduce pollution," Mugoša pointed out.
Money from the city and EU budgets, and from loans
Srđan Perić said that, first of all, it is necessary to lay good foundations and create a new municipal waste management plan.
"The solutions for a cleaner city are quite clear: increasing the number of bins and containers in all urban and suburban settlements in Podgorica, improving the garbage collection system, with more regular emptying of containers and bins, procurement and installation of equipment for the separate collection of plastic, glass, metal and bulky waste and its installation in all settlements in Podgorica, construction of facilities for sorting different types of waste (paper, plastic, glass, metal...)".
He said that, in addition to traditional waste collection, he will advocate for the improvement of the system for separate waste collection, as well as for recycling and composting.
"When it comes to incentives for citizens, our plan is to revise the billing system for the waste collection service, with the introduction of incentives for composting, separating and minimizing waste," Perić pointed out.
He pointed out that funds for this approach can be provided from the Capital City budget, something that is part of the regular activities of city companies, and support from EU funds, which is easy to find for projects dealing with this topic, if there is knowledge and willingness.
"The existing government is in deficit in one or both fields - they know that. The activity should definitely last during the entire mandate, but the first tangible results can be had in 12 to 24 months", said Perić.
Ilija Mugoša said that a functional waste disposal system is crucial for the health and appearance of Podgorica, and this will be achieved with more modern machinery, more efficient layout and the necessary disposal infrastructure.
"We will modernize the machinery and deploy it efficiently. We will introduce modern solutions such as containers that use a sensor to indicate when they need to be emptied, to modern plants for ecological treatment at landfills and ecological waste incinerators," said Mugoša.
He assessed that citizens should not be declared unconscionable, but that infrastructure for disposal should be provided:
"Because we all aim to live in a clean city."
Vuk Kadić said that the implementation of the projects would be financed through the allocation of larger funds in the budget for specific purposes, but also through certain models of cooperation with international financial institutions, organizations and funds available for financing this type of projects.
He said that the determination of the location for the implementation of the mentioned projects, the technical-technological solution in which way they will be implemented and the problems eliminated, the dynamics of the works, i.e. the period in which the facilities will be put into use, as well as the financial analysis will be precisely defined prices, and therefore the value of the investment, will be defined through technical documentation for the preparation of which experts will be hired in accordance with domestic and international regulations.
He pointed out that he will initiate the preparation of technical documentation for the mentioned projects, all in accordance with the Law on Planning and Construction of Buildings, special regulations, rules of the profession and urban planning and technical conditions.
"Also, as we have already pointed out, we intend to implement projects from the "Green Cities" program with sources of financing from international financial institutions, which deal with solving problems related to water supply and wastewater treatment, waste disposal, traffic and general issues which improve the lives of citizens and which are of vital importance for the functional and sustainable development of Podgorica", said Kadić.
Stanko Đuričić said that the CGA has a program part of 12 points, which is a condition for cooperation with those political entities that want to solve problems immediately and that do not require large funds - and one of them is the installation of underground containers in the first two city zones.
"This program solution has multiple benefits for the inner city core. Hygiene, unpleasant smells, stray dogs, larger capacities for garbage disposal, a nicer environment for living are what the capital city needs", stated Đuričić.
He said that the second program solution of the CGA is recycling and the installation of "recyclomats".
"With this program solution, it is achieved that every part of waste for recycling will be used, processed and placed on the market as raw material or finished product. We make furniture for parks, type chunas for Lake Skadar, equipment for schools and kindergartens, to keep our streets and parks clean. The network of recycling machines is there to provide benefits in city transport, parking service, mobile operators and the like", said Đuričić.
He pointed out that a special part of the CGA program refers to waste recycling and waste removal from the first five urban zones.
"The capital city must provide timely removal of (in)organic waste at the request of any resident of Podgorica, from the first five urban zones. Organic waste will be further processed for the production of pellets, and inorganic waste will be disposed of in the designated places", said Đuričić.
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