Lipor's Eco+Perto project distributed 12 mobile eco centres in the municipalities of Espinho, Gondomar, Maia, Matosinhos, Porto, Póvoa de Varzim, Valongo and Vila do Conde. In the first half of 2021, the units in question allowed the collection of 13 tonnes of light bulbs, waste electrical and electronic equipment (REE), batteries, contaminated packaging, ink and toner cartridges, cork stoppers, non-packaging paper and CDs and DVDs.
According to Lusa Vítor Pereira, responsible for the project, the implementation of this initiative was carried out in phases, having started later in some municipalities, but the amounts collected are similar in all of them. Thus, on average, “three tons per month were collected, which is perfect, considering the waste we are talking about”, he considered. The official also highlighted that the collection of household hazardous waste will be mandatory, from 2025, and that this measure serves as "preparation". "We do not know for sure which flows will be mandatory in 2025, but, taking into account the modality of mobile eco centres, it will be possible to adapt to the different flows that will be defined".
The coordinator of operational projects at Lipor, Filipe Carneiro, explained that this operation has the support of the Municipal Councils, which manage the mobility of equipment. These eco centres “have a periodicity and, within the municipality itself, they rotate, throughout the month, at different points, in order to try to reach the largest number of population possible”, he said. Filipe Carneiro stressed that this project fits into the mission of the inter-municipal company, because it allows "to reduce the amount of waste that is sent to the unsorted", giving them, "within the circularity, value", by "enhancing their recycling" .
The official also referred that this first semester was a period “of learning, for Lipor and for the people”, at a time when the covid-19 pandemic hindered awareness campaigns. This project, which received 85 percent funding from POSEUR, under the Portugal 2020 operational program and the European Cohesion Fund, “is just starting”, but will continue, with the support of the municipalities involved.