ZERO Waste North West and Derry City and Strabane District Council held a roundtable discussion last week at the City Hotel, Derry to inform the development of a Zero Waste Circular Economy Strategy for the Council area.
Representatives from over 20 organisations from the private, community and public sector discussed the opportunities provided by fully embracing the Circular Economy and in particular the potential for employment creation locally, linked directly to the sustainable management of products, materials and wastes.
Recognising the opportunities to move Derry and Strabane towards a Zero Waste Circular Economy, Eunomia Research & Consulting was commissioned to undertake a feasibility study and develop a strategy for the area.
As part of the ongoing study, the partnership wanted the input of stakeholders, which resulted in the roundtable discussion to take soundings on the draft strategy.
The lead author of the report, Dominic Hogg of Eunomia, said: “it was great to have so many contributions from such a diverse range of organisations represented in the room. The Councils decision to pursue this strategy shows its willingness to embrace the future, and it should be applauded for its foresight”.
Conor Canning, Head of Environment with Derry City and Strabane District Council, explained that achieving a Zero Waste Circular Economy, is a key objective of the Council outlined in its Strategic Growth Plan
He said the event this week was an excellent opportunity to engage with stakeholders and gauge their views on how they can work collectively on developing a Strategy that can be used as a model for other District Councils, and communities, throughout the region.
He said: “The study will focus on the technical, economic and sustainable benefits of a zero waste circular economy approach in terms of future investment by Council in terms of waste management.
“Once the draft strategy has been completed the partnership intends to engage in a series of further discussions with community, business and governmental stakeholders across the Council district “
Speaking about the benefits of such an approach, Conor Canning explained that the project has received the endorsement of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Director Ligia Noronha.
“I am very happy that Zero Waste North West’ with the support of the local authority, Derry and Strabane Council and in cooperation with Donegal County Council are working on a possible strategy for a circular economy for the Region.
“Circular economy holds an unique opportunity for creating jobs, meeting new ways of provisioning goods and services, and eliminating waste in cities as these aggregate both supply of materials for reuse, recover, recycle and remake, but also demand for goods and services and hence the possibility of scaling up.
“My congratulations on the launch and best wishes for the onward journey.”
