This weekend we carried out our Coffee Compost Action thanks to the help of volunteers, and we would especially like to mention the support we received from Emaus. We have a working agreement with Emaus in other fields and since we are working on several joint projects, it would be good to continue with this action also. And while we are giving thanks we must praise the indispensable support of the bartenders. Covid has been very tough in this emergency with the security measures imposed on the hospitality sector being particularly severe and BBT fully supports their demands and shows its solidarity with them. We`d just like you to know that it was a real pleasure working with you this weekend!!
Almost all the bars in Mungia took part in this event and we managed to collect a total of 200 kilos of coffee grounds. This means that 500 kilos could easily be collected in a week or in other words, 26,000 kilos in a year. The fact is that according to information from Mungia town-hall, in 2019, 41,000 organic waste was collected, despite the fact that 1100 families are taking part in the 5th container initiative. In our meeting last week with the councillor from Urban Development and the environmental officer appeared to be optimistic by the fact that more people have started to sign up to join the 5th container initiative (to recycle organic waste you have to sign up and are then given a key to open a brown bin, the so-called 5th container). It is true that it is good news and it is also true that the possibility of now being able to recycle leftover meat and fish has made this easier. This is exactly one of the proposals that we made in the Zero Zabor Bizkaia motion we presented in December. But in our opinion it is the easiest to point out, but without the bonus system much more organic waste will not be collected. How else can it be explained that even though 1100 families are already involved it is only 1% of our waste !!! The Mungia Garbi website clearly states that organic matter is 40% of all household waste !!!!
Unfortunately, although the Town-Hall of Mungia seems ready to talk to us, we do not see any possibility of common work in this area, nor the will to unite with us to fight against Climate Change. We have made our calculations and can say that it is completely feasible to build a regional composting plant in Mungia and by doing so create some jobs. We have made specific proposals and interest in our coffee composting action has been aroused elsewhere. In fact, some members of the Basque Climate Change Center have shown an interest in carrying out some experimental work on uses for coffee grounds, and a Swiss Compost organization wants to interview us. Why doesn’t the council show more interest? When is Mungia Town Council going to have a Climate Emergency Plan? When will the Climate Emergency awareness work start in Mungia? Faced with a climate emergency there is no excuse! We must be a Fast Town !!! And why not use, as other Town-Halls have done, the finance available from the Department of Economic Development, Sustainability and Environment of the Basque Government to carry out research? And we are ready to help in that !!!