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Decision making process
Name of the case study
Waste Management Concept - Plastics, in Graz
Decision making process - stages
Preliminary stage: gathering relevant information
Screening: information to the local government and the public (internet, folder, information events, etc.) and pilot projects.
Scoping: gathering information and evaluation of it, providing (new) information to the public and government.
Decision making process - levels
For every change (e.g. of contracts with private companies) the political decision of the municipality of Graz is necessary. It has to be decided in the municipal council (policy level). Therefore, the department of waste management (technical level) has to prepare everything for this decision, especially things concerning the technical background.
An important instrument for the decision making process is the waste management plan that every waste management association has to formulate. It is a requirement which defines everything regarding waste management (it could be compared to the land utilisation plan each municipality has). The Waste management plan has to be updated and adapted if necessary every 5 years. The weak point is that no municipality is legally prosecuted if this does not happen.
Another weak point is that almost no citizen knows about the content of the waste management plan or is involved in its making.
The waste management plan has to be approved by the government and has also to consider national interests and has to ensure that no conflicts arise.
There is also a close cooperation with the environmental department of Graz in terms of LA 21 processes, sustainability, air quality and noise.
Decision making process - sources of information
Sources of information used during the Decision making process include the environmental department of Graz, province of Styria, a database where the legal basis and relevant programmes are listed. The waste management plan is the most important information source behind the project
Decision making process - who are the decision makers
The decision making in this project involved experts from the waste management department who prepare information so that politicians can make their decisions.
Decision making process - who made the final decision for project implementation
The final determination for project implementation was a political decision.
Name of tool
Waste management plan - pilot project "Yellow bag"
Decision making process - tools in decision-making process
The tool is supposed to be used from the beginning of the process by technicians. The use of the tool (by using bags instead of bins) resulted in mistakes (non-plastic substances included in the recycling) being reduced from 25 – 30% down to about 10%.(the data were collected by measures after the implementation of the pilot project). Benchmarks were defined: indicators are needed for planning and for updating the waste management plan every 5 years. The collection rate and the rate of mistakes in the different collection systems are gathered for optimising this tool and are compared to the rates of the previous years. This is to ensure an ongoing improvement that can be seen through monitoring.
Decision making process - how was the information for the dmp disseminated
There was a great amount of information disseminated directly to the public about the waste management plan and the project. The department for waste management started a big campaign to inform private households about the new concept. Information sheets were also translated into 15 languages to inform people of nationalities other than Austrian living in Graz.
There exists also a Webpage to inform people about the new system http://www.oekomarkt.graz.at/
Decision making process - how was the public involved
The public were not directly involved in the process but were well informed. Handouts to inform households about the aspired reduction of waste and how they could contribute to this aim where distributed.
Decision making process - was there public discussion over the project
There was no public discussion over the project, only information events.
What tools were used to assess sustainability?
Waste management plan - pilot project "Yellow bag"
More information