Brief Description:

Hazardous Waste Management (HWM) is a critical public health and safety issue as it impacts people and the environment. Inappropriate management of hazardous waste creates high risks and financial burdens on everyone. The project "Capital Cities Collaborating on Common Challenges in Hazardous Waste Management - Yerevan, Warsaw, Tirana" is designed to bring about significant improvements in HWM, providing innovative and collaborative solutions to local governments, companies and citizens. We all need to apply the 5Rs: Refuse, Reuse, Recycle, Recover, Residual waste management, and to do it in collaborative and smart ways.

While the need to develop hazardous waste management strategies and tools is omnipresent, the project offers a sustainable action plan to secure safe and clean cities, air, water and put simply, a healthy and safe living environment. Effective hazardous waste management will have a long-term impact on environmental, community and individual health and safety levels, thus minimizing the related burdens on the government. Ultimately, effective HWM will increase the quality of life of citizens.

Action in Brief

The project team, in close cooperation with key stakeholders, aims to strengthen urban governance in hazardous waste management by cities-to-cities partnership, greater citizens' participation and mainstreaming best practices, with focus on Yerevan, in collaboration with Warsaw and Tirana. The project logic follows the respective framework:

• Conducting a comprehensive baseline study and needs assessment as an evidence-based starting point
• Introduction of improved technical, organisational, 'smart' solutions for HWM
• Raising citizens' awareness and participation in HWM
• Making HWM a daily practice.

Based on the abovementioned, the project pursuits to:
1) Strengthen evidence-based governance aspects by technical and organisational solutions for HWM,
2) Improve the citizens' awareness and participation in management of hazardous waste,
3) Mainstream effective management of hazardous waste in cities.

The project is expected to reach over 6 million people as directly benefiting from the action. Best European practices will be promoted and the EU-funding makes the action possible.