Waste management
Always sort
A significant part of waste in many areas of the world is still dumped into the environment. Yet proper management of the material waste generated by consumerism would make all the difference. Let’s consider how this can happen.
Good waste management is closely linked to the increase in waste generated and its persistence in the environment. For this reason, Camst not only strives to produce less waste, but also combines prevention with sorted waste collection, recycling of materials and energy recovery of waste that cannot be recycled further. There is a particular focus on food waste. In 2021, Camst and the Group's Italian companies produced a total of 2,854 tonnes of waste, almost all of it non-hazardous (sewage sludge and packaging above all). Of this waste, almost 40% (or 1,136 tonnes) was sent off for recovery. Similarly, the facility division sent off more than 492 tonnes of waste out of the 500 it produced for recovery, i.e. more than 98%.
Giving value to waste: Waste to Value
Now in its third year of trial operation, Waste to Value is a project originated in response to the need to generate less waste and to come up with innovative solutions for the recovery of byproducts which would otherwise become food waste.
Through a joint programme by Igd Siiq, Coop Alleanza 3.0 and Camst, with support from Impronta Etica and the Municipality of Villanova di Castenaso, we have given new life to the orange peel and coffee grounds left in the bar located in the Centro Nova shopping centre every day, converting them into second products to be re-used in the same centre in the form of products or services, under a circular economy approach.
The soil improver produced from the waste will be used for the maintenance of public green areas. A flower garden on the theme of biodiversity will be created in the area around the composter in order to educate and inform all users of the shopping centre.
From waste to the production of new resources: the Camst-Hera project
In 2020 Camst and the Hera Group started a new collaboration on circular economy projectsfor the production of biodiesel from used vegetable oils and biomethane from organic waste. The partnership was consolidated during 2021, with a special focus on the monitoring results.
Regarding the first project, Camst and Hera have activated a closed-loop, sustainable, SGS-certified circular supply chain that transforms the waste oil produced in 62 of the Group's kitchens into biofuel. In 2021 alone, 19,595 kg of vegetable oils were collected, resulting in the production of 18.80 tonnes of biodiesel, equivalent to 22,800 litres dispensed at the pump - an annual saving of 19 tonnes of oil equivalent. In addition, the emission of 63 tonnes of CO2 was avoided, equivalent to the absorption capacity of as many as 3,150 medium-stemmed plants. These results will enable us to expand the project outside Emilia-Romagna, covering Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Tuscany, Umbria, Lazio, Lombardy, Sardinia, Trentino-Alto Adige, Veneto, Marche, Abruzzo and Liguria.
Regarding the second area of cooperation, the organic waste produced by Camst in the provinces of Bologna and Modena is collected by Hera and processed in the Sant'Agata Bolognese plant. In 2021, 421 tonnes of organic waste were collected, resulting in the production of 32,838 m3 of biomethane, equivalent to the annual consumption of approximately 23 medium-sized cars. In addition, the biomethane produced avoided the use of 25 tonnes of fossil fuel and 59 tonnes of CO2 emissions, equivalent to the absorption of about 3,000 medium-sized trees.
Watch the interview with Stefano Amaducci, Head of Circular Economy at Hera Group
