materials. This is foreseen as one of the most efficient solutions for addressing the
single-use plastics packaging problem, providing tangible economic, environmental
and social benefits. The project will focus on the East Mediterranean coast, targeting
the three biggest coastal countries: Italy, Croatia and Greece, with pilot sites in the
Italian region of Emilia-Romagna (Bologna, Cervia, Misano Adriatico, Ravenna),
Aegean Sea (Greek islands of Syros and Ikaria) and Ionian Sea (Greek island of
Corfu and Croatian islands of Zlarin and Cres).
The main objective of the project is to set a replicable voluntary protocol for free
single-use plastics items related to food packaging in cafes, restaurants, foods stores,
hotel, beach facilities as well as for public events and public spaces. The purpose of
the protocol, to be designed as a toolbox, is to provide support and guidance to local
businesses in order to comply to the newly EU SUP Directive
2 (2019) and go beyond
the law to engage Mediterranean islands and cities in the transition towards a free
single-use plastic environment. The project will follow a system innovation
approach, benefiting from EIT Climate-KIC extensive network of innovative
start-ups and research facilities which can support the transition towards singleuse-plastic (SUP) free environment. The involvement of problem’s owners (local
stakeholders with the need of eliminating single-use-plastic items) will play a central
role in the project, being at the core of the strategy to develop the protocol. The
project will create a learning loop between the scientific community, the industry,
policy makers and local businesses in order to identify effective alternative solutions
to the use of SUP items, thus limiting the consumption of plastic products which will
in turn decrease the production of plastic item itself and plastic wastes. Therefore the
project ought to have positive impacts both at the start and at the end of the plastic
chain, reducing CO 2 emissions and marine plastic litters.
The project will build-up on pre-existing projects focusing on marine plastic litter
and waste management (i.e. Interred Mediterranean ACT4LITTER and Plastic
Busters projects) and work closely with local stakeholders and business owners to
assess their needs and co-identify alternative solutions and new innovative
approaches to replace SUP items. The inventory of potential solutions for free
SUP item in bars, cafes or restaurants will include a legislative, environmental and
financial assessment in each country to ensure that the proposed alternatives are
legally applicable, environmentally and financially sustainable to avoid creating new
negative environmental externalities and financial burdens. Additionally, through
the protocol, MEDfreeSUP seeks to assess the capacity of public authorities (from
local to national and EU level) to support local businesses in the transition to the use
of non-SUP items and ensure the smooth implementation of the EU SUP Directive.
In the current Covid-19 context, the financial capacity of local business owners in
coastal touristic areas (main targets in Greece and Croatia pilot sites) to support the
potential additional costs and changes in the ways the business should operate when
it comes to using alternative products to plastic items is even more relevant if we
2 Directive (EU) 2019/904 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 on the
reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment
146
P. Koundouri et al.
single-use plastics packaging problem, providing tangible economic, environmental
and social benefits. The project will focus on the East Mediterranean coast, targeting
the three biggest coastal countries: Italy, Croatia and Greece, with pilot sites in the
Italian region of Emilia-Romagna (Bologna, Cervia, Misano Adriatico, Ravenna),
Aegean Sea (Greek islands of Syros and Ikaria) and Ionian Sea (Greek island of
Corfu and Croatian islands of Zlarin and Cres).
The main objective of the project is to set a replicable voluntary protocol for free
single-use plastics items related to food packaging in cafes, restaurants, foods stores,
hotel, beach facilities as well as for public events and public spaces. The purpose of
the protocol, to be designed as a toolbox, is to provide support and guidance to local
businesses in order to comply to the newly EU SUP Directive
2 (2019) and go beyond
the law to engage Mediterranean islands and cities in the transition towards a free
single-use plastic environment. The project will follow a system innovation
approach, benefiting from EIT Climate-KIC extensive network of innovative
start-ups and research facilities which can support the transition towards singleuse-plastic (SUP) free environment. The involvement of problem’s owners (local
stakeholders with the need of eliminating single-use-plastic items) will play a central
role in the project, being at the core of the strategy to develop the protocol. The
project will create a learning loop between the scientific community, the industry,
policy makers and local businesses in order to identify effective alternative solutions
to the use of SUP items, thus limiting the consumption of plastic products which will
in turn decrease the production of plastic item itself and plastic wastes. Therefore the
project ought to have positive impacts both at the start and at the end of the plastic
chain, reducing CO 2 emissions and marine plastic litters.
The project will build-up on pre-existing projects focusing on marine plastic litter
and waste management (i.e. Interred Mediterranean ACT4LITTER and Plastic
Busters projects) and work closely with local stakeholders and business owners to
assess their needs and co-identify alternative solutions and new innovative
approaches to replace SUP items. The inventory of potential solutions for free
SUP item in bars, cafes or restaurants will include a legislative, environmental and
financial assessment in each country to ensure that the proposed alternatives are
legally applicable, environmentally and financially sustainable to avoid creating new
negative environmental externalities and financial burdens. Additionally, through
the protocol, MEDfreeSUP seeks to assess the capacity of public authorities (from
local to national and EU level) to support local businesses in the transition to the use
of non-SUP items and ensure the smooth implementation of the EU SUP Directive.
In the current Covid-19 context, the financial capacity of local business owners in
coastal touristic areas (main targets in Greece and Croatia pilot sites) to support the
potential additional costs and changes in the ways the business should operate when
it comes to using alternative products to plastic items is even more relevant if we
2 Directive (EU) 2019/904 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 June 2019 on the
reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment
146
P. Koundouri et al.