A new dispute between local authorities and the government, over waste management, appears to be on the cards. Earlier this week, the president of the municipalities union and Larnaca mayor, Andreas Vyras, threatened not to implement the ‘pay as you throw’ scheme, which should supposedly be introduced in 2027, unless outstanding issues such as funding and logistics were settled. The municipalities were demanding clarity and money to go ahead.

The government, on the other hand, is under pressure from the EU to introduce ‘pay as you throw’, having already missed two deadlines to introduce the scheme. It could land itself in trouble if it misses another deadline because the municipalities refuse to play ball. Waste management policy has been an unmitigated disaster, governments, over the last 10 years displaying an inability to meet any EU targets, in terms of recycling, waste treatment and the phasing out of waste landfills.

Municipalities, which fear their residents will be unhappy with the higher rates, demand guidance on organic waste processing sites and costs, they want funding for equipment and the licensing of the packaging waste system. They also want the annual state grant to increase by 50 per cent to €170 million, although some funds have been allocated for the scheme. Some €25m has been allocated to help municipalities buy bins, prepaid bags and refuse lorries; another €35 will be used to fund a smart waste platform.

Former Green Party leader Charalambos Theopemptou told this paper that “the infrastructure simply does not exist in several areas,” highlighting the consistent failure of government to put a comprehensive plan in place. Instead, every initiative is undertaken in isolation and fails because the necessary measures to support it are not in place. This is what we are witnessing now, the municipalities citing these weaknesses to oppose the ‘pay as you throw’ scheme.

The way forward is for the government to put together a comprehensive scheme for reducing waste in the production of which Cyprus is one of the EU leaders. It should estimate the cost for trucks, bins, organic waste processing sites, the continuing operation of landfills and then work out a charging system that rewards households that separate organic waste and recycle. It should also seek the cooperation of the union of municipalities, the help of which is vital for the waste management scheme to work effectively.

There will be complaints, because people never accept higher charges without protest, but if there is a plan and local authorities, with the support of central government, implement it universally, it will eventually be accepted. For as long as there is no overall plan and the authorities resort to piecemeal measures people will not cooperate. We need a plan and the message that the authorities actually know what they are doing.