Motion on Waste Management and the Climate Emergency
We told you in November how we planned to have a round-table on the subject of household waste management but due to Covid-19 that was impossible. However, we have managed to present the views of the speakers in this video. As you know we also planned to present Ecologistak Martxan`s motion on waste management in Mungia Town-Hall and on December 23rd we did that. With the exception of the PSE (which did not respond to our invitation), we spoke to all parties that make up Mungia Town Council, and all three opposition parties presented our motion but the PNV and PSE voted against it so it was not approved.
The representative of the PNV had told us in a previous meeting that she considered that some of the points were good but did not see some points as being feasible, and asked us not to present the motion and reach an agreement among all of us. But we believe that all the points of the motion we have presented are realistic, and easy to put in place. For example, it should also be noted that the regional composting plant we have proposed will be built in other places, and Getxo, for example, will soon have its own composting plant to manage the organic matter in the area. We can’t say it louder; only 1% of Mungia’s organic matter is put in the 5th container, and that amount is frankly pathetic! As Oreina explains in the video Azpeitia has in only a matter of years Azpeitia town-hall has increased the amount of waste that it recycles or composts from 28% to 70% and we believe that if Mungia town-hall accepted the measures we have proposed the amount of recycled or composted waste could easily be increased from 25% to 80% in just a few years!
On the other hand, in these difficult times it is utterly reprehensible to waste so much food, especially knowing that there are legally viable solutions to recovering that food. Three years ago the council lacked the courage to support the Solidarity Refrigerator project and the same seems to be true of the Rexcatering project. They’ve been aware of this project since last March but as far as we know nothing has so far been done to see how it could be put in practice. The Rexcatering project would be very helpful in managing the leftover food in the Mungia schools and nursing homes just as the Hernani Town Council will soon start doing!
But we want to make it clear that it’s not just the council’s responsibility, and we’re all to blame for this situation. It is true that we need to reach a consensus and be willing to work together in the face of the climate emergency, but for that we must accept that this emergency is a reality. We have all seen what measures our authorities have taken in the face of the Coronavirus emergency, but we do not see the measures to combat the climate emergency. Five years have passed since the Paris Agreement and the temperature continues to rise. In fact, it has already risen 1.2 ° C so it won`t be long before it reaches 1.5 °C!! In view of this, bold measures must be taken and the population must feel involved. Like all transition groups, BBT was set up to provide solutions to an oil-free society. Food and energy sovereignty are our main focus without forgetting, of course, the need to protect and value local biodiversity. We will continue to work on this, and we extend our hand to all other social and political groups to act together, as the future of our children and the planet are at stake! Mungia, and indeed all the towns in the area, need an inclusive strategy to become carbon-neutral and be able to fight against climate change!
