The European Week for Waste Prevention rewards St. George’s School from Biscay for its project to reduce noise by recycling textile materials

Public Agency Ihobe — Thu, 01 Jun 2023 00:00:00 +0200

The St. George's British International School in Leioa (Bizkaia) is the Basque candidacy that, among the 16 finalists of a total of 16,129 actions presented throughout Europe, has won the category of “Educational Center” of the awards of the European Week of Waste Prevention, whose award ceremony has been held in Dublin (Ireland).

The European ICEBERG project faces its last year of activity with all case studies in progress

Public Agency Ihobe — Fri, 05 May 2023 00:00:00 +0200

The ICEBERG Project led by TECNALIA Research & Innovation and in which 35 public and private organizations from ten European countries are involved, faces its last working year with important advances in the recycling of construction materials, new scientific publications and patents in progress. The Netherlands hosted on 17, 18 and 19 April the general assembly of member entities that served to present the progress achieved in these three years and to review the work performed in the six case studies and in the different areas of activity.

Tapia defends a new regulation on eco-design to promote the circular economy at the European Council of Environment Ministers

Public Agency Ihobe — Mon, 24 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0200

Regional Minister Tapia has attended today the European Council of Environment Ministers in Luxembourg on behalf of the Autonomous Communities, where she has supported the proposal for a European regulation aimed at setting environmental design requirements for sustainable products.

Ihobe defends eco-innovation in Ireland as an instrument to boost the circular economy in companies

Public Agency Ihobe — Fri, 07 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0200

Ander Elgorriaga, an expert in eco-innovation and circular economy of the public company Ihobe, presented in Ireland the progress, results and good practices achieved by the Basque Country in eco-innovation, which are allowing progress towards a circular economy. He did so at the European Commission's TAIEX multi-country workshop on the circular economy, held from 4 to 6 October in the Midlands (Ireland), which is an important event for exchanging knowledge and best practices in the circular economy.

This week, TECNALIA and GAIKER Technology Centres are hosting the General Meeting of the ICEBERG EU project in which six Basque organisations are involved

Public Agency Ihobe — Thu, 06 Oct 2022 00:00:00 +0200

As of yesterday, the Basque Country is the venue for the general assembly of partners of the ICEBERG project, which is headed by TECNALIA Research & Innovation and in which 35 public and private organisations from ten European countries are involved. The meeting, organised by Gaiker Technology Centre, kicked off yesterday in Zamudio and will provide a chance to review the progress made over the first two years of work.

Reciclanet, Uvesco, Axular Lizeoa & Provincial Council of Álava: the 4 Basque candidates for the 13th European Week for Waste Reduction Awards

Public Agency Ihobe — Wed, 16 Feb 2022 00:00:00 +0100

The European Week for Waste Reduction (EWWR) held on 20-28 November 2021 gave rise to 136 actions throughout the Basque Country, four of which have been selected to compete for the award for the best action in the categories of Businesses, Public Administrations, Associations/NGOs and Educational Establishments.

A total of 130 campaigns from Basque Country organisations entered for European Week for Waste Reduction

Public Agency Ihobe — Thu, 25 Nov 2021 00:00:00 +0100

The European Week for Waste Reduction is a European Commission programme that encourages all Europeans to carry out awareness-raising campaigns about sustainable resource and waste management. This year, the European Week for Waste Reduction is focused on shaping circular communities with a local approach aimed at preventing waste production.

35 organisations from ten European countries take part in the European ICEBERG project for the innovative re-use of construction and demolition waste

Public Agency Ihobe — Mon, 27 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0200

The project, which will last for four years, has a budget of 15,667,498 euros, of which the European Union is contributing 12,997,935 euros from the Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Framework Programme. Six Basque organisations are involved: Ihobe - the Basque Government's public environmental management company, Fundación TECNALIA Research & Innovation (which will coordinate the consortium), GAIKER Technology Centre, and the companies Serikat, Lezama Demoliciones and Viuda de Sainz. The aim is to offer innovative circular economy-based solutions for producing high-value materials from the most common construction and demolition waste (C&DW).

The European Green Deal, a roadmap to a sustainable economy

Public Agency Ihobe — Mon, 20 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0200

The European Green Deal is synonymous with transformation, with implementing a more environmentally-friendly productive model and with developing new job opportunities and market niches. In short, to move to a sustainable economy.

However, the emergence of the coronavirus has added a new sum to the equation: that of recovering from a socio-economic crisis whose depth and length is still unknown.

Ihobe supports a circular economy project for the reuse of a thousand tonnes of plastic offcuts

Public Agency Ihobe — Mon, 18 May 2020 00:00:00 +0200

Ihobe, the public environmental management agency of the Ministry of the Environment, Land Use Planning and Housing, will grant thirty thousand euros to a circular economy project undertaken by the company Auria Solutions Vitoria (Álava), through which it is intended to reuse a thousand tonnes of plastic material from the manufacture of floors and acoustic and thermal insulation for the automotive industry.

Elena Moreno: "We have adopted the Sustainable Development Goals as inspiration for the Basque model for well-being"

Department of Economic Development, Sustainability and Environment — Wed, 25 Sep 2019 00:00:00 +0200

This morning, Elena Moreno, the Basque Government’s Deputy Minister for the Environment, took part in The Hub, the high-level forum organised during the New York Climate Week. Speaking to the auditorium of over 600 economic and political leaders, she presented the measures adopted by the Basque Country to address the climate crisis. The Deputy Minister particularly stressed the importance of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a cornerstone of Basque political action. She went on to highlight the strategic planning designed by the Basque Government over a decade ago to progress towards sustainability, where people are at the centre.

Zero Plastiko Urdaibai collects 8 tonnes of waste in the Urdaibai Biosphere Reserve

Public Agency Ihobe — Tue, 11 Jun 2019 00:00:00 +0200

The Minister for the Environment, Territorial Planning and Housing of the Basque Government, Iñaki Arriola, expressed his great satisfaction with the day for the collection of plastic from public areas that took place today along the coast of Urdaibai, and also in points inside the Biosphere Reserve because “8 tonnes of all types of plastic were collected” and because of “the high level commitment shown by all the participants” throughout the day.

Change the Change Conference to be showcased at Berdeago, the Basque environmental sustainability fair

Public Agency Ihobe — Fri, 01 Feb 2019 00:00:00 +0100

Ihobe, the Basque Government’s environmental management agency, will be at the Berdeago fair in Durango (Bizkaia) over the coming two weekends. Its stand will showcase the wide range of activities at the Ekoetxea environmental centre network and, in particular, it will unveil the 'Change the Change’ International Climate Change Conference, which will be held in San Sebastian from 6 to 8 March.

Events can generate a positive impact when sustainable

Public Agency Ihobe — Fri, 10 Aug 2018 00:00:00 +0200

When anyone attends a conference, a convention, work meeting or any other type of event, whether professional or recreational, the organiser is seeking to create an impact and if the sensation generated is interesting, beneficial, amusing and inspiring, all the better. Yet we can include a further one to this list of objectives: that the event in question is also committed to sustainability.

Carbon footprint and our impact on the environment

Public Agency Ihobe — Fri, 10 Aug 2018 00:00:00 +0200

Numbers are an essential part of our life and their measurement capability is nearly an indispensable aspect of our existence: how old we are, our weight, kilometres travelled each day, calories consumed, the amount of monthly gigabytes in our phone package and even our degree of satisfaction with a service.

Tecnalia, EVE, SPRI and EuskoTren join the list of sponsors of the 8th European Conference on Sustainable Cities and Towns to be held from 27 to 29 April in the Basque Country

Public Agency Ihobe — Mon, 07 Mar 2016 00:00:00 +0100

Four new organisations have been added to the network of sponsors of the 8th European Conference on Sustainable Cities and Towns, to be held in the Basque Country from 27 to 29 April. The technology centre Tecnalia, the Basque Energy Agency EVE, the Basque Business Development Agency SPRI and the transport operator EuskoTren have teamed up with the coach-making company Irizar as collaborating entities for this event. Over 1,000 people drawn from government institutions, members of the research community and the economic sector from Europe are expected to attend the conference.

Circular Economy: DIGIMET on the final straight of a furnace project to treat and recover steelwork dust on a semi-industrial scale

Public Agency Ihobe — Mon, 15 Feb 2016 00:00:00 +0100

DIGIMET has embarked on the industrialisation phase of its technology that will include setting up an initial treatment furnace in a steelworks

A thousand regional and local authorities to meet in the Basque Country to analyse the future of Europe based on sustainability policies

Public Agency Ihobe — Tue, 29 Sep 2015 00:00:00 +0200

The international organisation ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability, the Basque Government, Bizkaia County Council and Bilbao City Council have launched the first call for the 8th European Conference on Sustainable Cities & Towns, which will be held in the Basque Country from 27 to 29 April 2016 under the theme "Transformative Action: the potential for Europe”. This event, considered to be the most important date on the 2016 calendar in the sphere of urban and local sustainable development policies, has the special backing of Udalsarea 21 - the Basque network of municipalities, and it will congregate over a thousand municipal stakeholders as well as private and public entities from Europe and Latin America.

Europe releases a 3-minute animated video to explain the advantages of the EMAS environmental certificate

Public Agency Ihobe — Thu, 18 Jun 2015 00:00:00 +0200

What is an EMAS certificate? What is it used for? Can my company have one? In just over 3 minutes, the European Commission's video summarises all you need to know about the EU Eco-Management and Audit Scheme - EMAS. The EMAS system, a European Commission scheme, was launched in 1995 and currently has over 4,500 organisations signed up throughout Europe.

Ana Oregi will be participating in Lyon's "Climate and Territory" meeting, where regions, countries and states shall analyse the Climate Change from a territorial perspective

Department of Economic Development, Sustainability and Environment — Thu, 18 Jun 2015 00:00:00 +0200

David Heurtel, Minister of the Environment in Quebec, Anne Hidalgo and Alain Juppe, mayors of Paris and Bordeaux, Aileen Mc Leod, Minister of the Environment of Scotland, Matthew Rodríguez, Secretary of State of California, Franz Untersteller, Minister of Baden-Wu?rttemberg, Jay Weatherill, Prime Minister of South Australia and Francois Hollande, President of France, will be some of those attending. "Oregi: "France is carrying out several actions before the Climate summit, to be held in Paris in December, wherein regions and countries contribute our strategies and actions; an agreement is mitigate the climate change is possible". It will be held the 1st and 2nd of July, in Rhône Alpes.

The Basque Country chosen to host the 8th European Conference on Sustainable Cities and Towns

Public Agency Ihobe — Thu, 28 May 2015 00:00:00 +0200

Over 800 local government representatives will meet in Bilbao from 27-29 April 2016. The 8th European Conference on Sustainable Cities and Towns is the flagship European conference on local environmental and sustainable development policies.

Three schools from Azkoitia, Bilbao and Zumaia, winners of the "Your Food is Not Waste" video contest

Public Agency Ihobe — Wed, 18 Mar 2015 00:00:00 +0100

Donostia-San Sebastián, 18 March 2015.- Nine students from Floreaga Salestar Ikastetxea, in Azkoitia; from La Inmaculada - Hijas de Jesús, in Bilbao; and from Maria eta Jose Ikastetxea, in Zumaia, are the prize-winners in the II "Your Food is Not Waste" video contest in the Compulsory Secondary, Upper Secondary and Social Media categories, respectively. The contest is an initiative organised by the Basque Municipal Waste Coordinator (OCRU), consisting of the Basque Government's Ministry for the Environment, the three Provincial Councils, and the publicly-owned company Ihobe, as the technical secretariat.

Stopping food waste, the main theme of the European Week for Waste Reduction

Department of Economic Development, Sustainability and Environment — Thu, 27 Nov 2014 00:00:00 +0100

In the Basque Country, the II "Your Food is not Waste" contest has been announced and which seeks to raise awareness among Basque students about this problem.

Oregi outlines for the United Nations the Basque Education for Sustainable Development experience in schools and ikastolas

Department of Economic Development, Sustainability and Environment — Wed, 12 Nov 2014 00:00:00 +0100

UNESCO World Conference on Education for Sustainable Development in Nagoya, Japan

A Basque consortium will develop a method to recycle up to 70% of vegetable, meat and dairy waste

LifeGiswaste — Mon, 24 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0100

Every day in Europe thousands of tonnes of food subproducts end up as waste because they are not put to use. The agrifood sector of the Basque Autonomous Community generates annually 4 million tonnes of organic material, by-products and waste; 113,000 tonnes are vegetable, meat and dairy waste, which has a high content in nutrients and compounds, and which could become raw material again, as ingredients for animal feed or for obtaining biofuels.

The Basque Government proposes new development and consumption models to preserve the Basque Country's biodiversity

Department of Economic Development, Sustainability and Environment — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 00:00:00 +0200

The Basque Government has signed the Basque Biodiversity Charter, which alerts to the danger of losing natural heritage, unless the models of development and consumption are changed. In representation of the region's executive and coinciding with the celebration of the World Bird Day, the Regional Minister of the Environment and Regional Policy, Ana Oregi, has adhered to the commitment to protect and preserve biodiversity, from an environmental point of view, and taking into account the economic value that it can contribute. Ana Oregi, along with the Vice-Ministers of the Environment, Agriculture and Tourism, also presented the song and video clip composed by Benito Lertxundi, Txingudi bizipen margotuak, in which the cultural and emotional relationship of the people of Hondarribia, Irun and Hendaia with nature is acknowledged.

Are we approaching the ‘final frontier’ of plastic recycling?

WRAP — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

The findings from a series of trials funded by WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme) show it could soon be possible to recycle almost all plastic packaging waste from the home.

Roadmap to a resource efficient Europe: an indispensable but not unique pillar of the EU resource efficiency agenda

European Partners For The Enviroment — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

The Resource Efficiency Alliance (REA) welcomes the Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe as one of the key pillars of Europe 2020 Strategy, inspiring a positive vision of the world we and our children would like to live in 2050 and leading to fundamental transformation.

Around 1 800 kg of non-mineral waste generated per capita in the EU27 in 2008

Eurostat — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

In 2008, the total non-mineral waste1 generated in the EU27 amounted to 920 million tonnes, which corresponds to 1 800 kg per capita. The manufacturing sector accounted for 26% of total generation of non-mineral waste, other economic activities2, such as agriculture, energy and services, for 50%, while households contributed 23%. Non-mineral waste reflects waste originating from all economic sectors and households, thus including waste generated from both production and consumption. It does not cover mineral waste, of which 90% originates from the mining and construction sectors. Non-mineral waste is an interesting indicator for environmental policies since it covers most of the waste for which reduction is an important environmental objective.

Materials Scarcity

Thu, 29 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

La escasez de materiales hace referencia a la escasez de metales y minerales que se espera a futuro. Con una población mundial en crecimiento la demanda de productos, y por lo tanto de estos materiales, también va en aumento.

Robots que extraen el refrigerante de los frigoríficos

Thu, 29 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

Reciclar frigoríficos puede ser una complicada tarea, sobre todo, si tienen más de 15 años de vida. El refrigerante de los viejos electrodomésticos puede causar el calentamiento de la atmósfera y la disminución de la capa de ozono.

Perspectivas del mercado de digestión anaeróbica. Superar las limitaciones para la implantación de nuevas infraestructuras.

Thu, 29 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

Los objetivos de este informe son: cuantificar los niveles de disponibilidad de alimentos en distintas fuentes comparándolo con las capacidades actuales, suministrar información de cómo conseguir los residuos alimenticios y facilitar unas pautas para superar las limitaciones en la financiación de este tipo de proyectos. El informe proporciona un análisis preliminar de estas cuestiones clave.

The Basque Country to celebrate the European Week for Waste Reduction 2011

Public Agency Ihobe — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

The Municipal Solid Waste Coordinator of the Basque Country (OCRU) will showcase the highest rated initiatives to prevent waste in Europe.

Parliament calls for greater EU clout over raw materials

Euractiv — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

The European Union should establish specific decision-making mechanisms to deal with raw materials issues and coordinate action between member states, the European Parliament said yesterday (13 September).

Huge rare earth deposits found in Pacific: Japan experts

Euractiv — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

Vast deposits of rare earth minerals, crucial in making high-tech electronics products, have been found on the floor of the Pacific Ocean and can be readily extracted, Japanese scientists said yesterday (4 July).

Fostering Innovation for Green Growth

OECD Environment — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

Green growth means fostering economic growth and development while ensuring that natural assets continue to provide the resources and environmental services on which our well-being relies. Innovation is key to green growth. It helps decouple growth from natural capital depletion and contributes to economic growth and job creation. Business is the driver of innovation, but governments need to provide clear and stable market signals, for example through carbon pricing. This book draws on work from across several parts of the OECD and explores policy actions for the deployment of new technologies and innovations as they emerge: investment in research and development, support for commercialisation, strengthening markets and fostering technology diffusion. Competition will be essential to bring out the best solutions.

Projections of Municipal Waste Management and Greenhouse Gases

Eionet — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

The report is using a life cycle approach in order to investigate the implications in GHG terms of the developments in MSW management in the EU from 1990 to 2020. The improvements observed in MSW management accross the EU have resulted in a significant GHG mitigation, cutting annual GHG emissions by 48 million tonnes from 1995 to 2008.

A step in the right direction about fooed packaging date labels

WRAP — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

It was interesting to observe last week’s media coverage of Defra’s announcement on changes to food packaging date labels. WRAP’s view is that anything that can be done to help make food labelling information clearer for consumers is a step in the right direction, and most of the coverage seems to agree, at least in part, with that opinion.

Key messages on material resource use and efficiency in Europe

Eionet — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

The ETC/SCP has been working with the latest available Material Flow Accounts (MFA) and Environmentally Extended Input Output Tables (EE-IOT) to gain insights into some key challenges to be tackled by the the Resource Efficiency Roadmap currently under development by the European Commission. These insights include the findings that Europe’s global resource footprint is more than double its direct material input and is growing; Europe is becoming increasingly dependent on metal and fossil fuel imports; growth in energy and resource productivity has been slower than growth in labour productivity; the export market has become the key driver of global resource footprints for a number of countries; and that important resource efficiency gains can be achieved through redirecting household expenditure to product groups with low resource intensities.

The Energetic society

Agencia Europea De Medio Ambiente — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

New report from the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency. Sustainability, the question of how our system of prosperity could be maintained, is one of the main issues of the coming decades. This report more specifically examines the ecological dimension, the responsible management of resources, nature and the environment.

Recycling plant puts dirty nappies to good use

Business Green — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

Midlands plant to convert nappies and sanitary products into roof tiles, saving 22,000 tonnes of CO2 a year

South-East European Conference & Exhibition ‘SAVE the Planet’ - Waste Management, Recycling, Environment 28-30 March 2012, Sofia, Bulgaria

Cordis-Wire — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

The exhibition will put on display new technologies and equipments for waste collection, treatment, landfill and composting, transport vehicles, recycling systems, environmental monitoring & protection services, etc.

Report shows deep-sea fishing is unsustainable

Cordis-Información Comunitaria Sobre I+D — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

The deep sea, the planet's biggest ecosystem, is in trouble, an international research team says, underling the need to stop commercial fishing in such waters and focus on productive waters instead. Presented in the journal Marine Policy, a comprehensive analysis reveals the unsustainability of deep-sea fisheries.

Big potential of cutting greenhouse gases from waste

Agencia Europea De Medio Ambiente — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

There is a big potential to cut greenhouse gases (GHGs) from municipal solid waste management, according to a new report from the European Environment Agency (EEA). The report, 'Waste opportunities – Past and future climate benefits from better municipal waste management in Europe', covers the EU-27 (excluding Cyprus), Norway and Switzerland. It estimates that these countries could make GHG savings of up to 78 million tonnes carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2-e) by 2020, or 1.53 % of Europe's emissions in 2008.

Whey Protein Transformed into Sustainable Food Packaging

Ecogeek — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

Whey protein, a milk protein that is a byproduct of cheese production, is often used in protein bars and shakes, but scientists in Barcelona have discovered that it can also be made into a more sustainable plastic for food packaging.

WATERDiss project starts collecting information

Cordis-Wire — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

The WATERDiss FP7 project aims to support EU funded research in the field of water management to speed-up the transfer of research outputs to water management institutions (a basin authority or a city) with a targeted time lag of only 3 - 5 years.

100% eradicating single-use plastic bags by 2018 included in the new Waste and Contaminated Land Act

Public Agency Ihobe — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

The Waste and Contaminated Land Act 22/2011, of 28 July, passed by the Spanish Parliament on 14 July, establishes a timeline for the total replacement of no-biodegradable single-use shopping bags by 2018. After over ten years of the initial waste legislation being in force, the implementation of this Act introduces European waste management legislation and the possibility to set up Deposit-Return Systems (SDDR).

Dinamarca: nuevo sistema de registro para residuos de empresas en puntos limpios municipales

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

Dinamarca va a implantar un nuevo sistema para que las empresas puedan hacer uso de los 'garbigunes' municipales. A partir del 1 de enero de 2012 las empresas deberán inscribirse previamente en un registro y escoger la modalidad de pago (cuota fija, vales, pago por peso...) que más les convenga. El sistema sustituirá al impuesto fijo introducido en 2010 y que ha recibido duras críticas.

Scottish Executive considers tougher measures for producer responsibility

Edie — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

The Scottish Government is now exploring the feasibility of setting Scotland-specific packaging recovery targets to drive up recycling rates on a local level, as well as introducing deposit return schemes for drinks packaging. Other proposals include changing the take-back mechanism for waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) at retail shops so consumers can hand in an old product at any shop currently selling equipment in the same category, without having to purchase a new product.

New book on social networks and natural resource management

Stockholm Resilience Centre. Stockholm University — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 00:00:00 +0200

Previous centre research has shown the crucial importance of social networks. Indeed, Social Network Analysis (SNA), a quantitative approach to the study of social relations, has increasingly emerged as a key tool for understanding the governance of natural resources.