Zero-waste-energy-efficient agricultural communities in the Greece- Republic of North Macedonia crossborder area

Specifically, through the project “Zeffiros” will be demonstrated a model of sustainable management of bio-waste through the production of biogas and compost, in those environments where the agricultural activity has been developed. By implementing pilot installations for bio-gas production, indirect interventions will be made in the segments of environmental protection, better air quality, increased food safety, more efficient use of available resources and renewable energy sources. The increased use of bio-waste as a resource for energy production, at the expense of the use of fossil fuels, will lead to a cleaner and healthier environment.

ZEFFIROS specific objectives are:

- demonstrate sustainable deployment and operation of municipal biogas installations

- raise awareness and change behavioural patterns and pilot home compost initiative

- build capacities on bio-waste management and circular economy

- provide exploitation strategy and plan for further municipal investments in biogas waste management solutions.

Main outputs include:

- Operational plan for both units defining business, governance and operation model

- Awareness raising and pilot demonstration campaign

- Framework analysis of local legislation or planning and EU policies in the domain

- C&D material to maximize impact (e.g. website, newsletters, social media, videos, interviews)

- Multi-language training materials and delivery of capacity building workshops for public staff, agri-professionals, general public and school teachers

- Exploitation and scale-up plan to propose investment in demonstrated technologies in the CB region and beyond;

- Certification process preparation to promote use of compost for municipal agri-purposes

- Technical specifications for pilot units and tested solutions.