CITREM is a pioneering project in Spain, promoted by the Fundació Fòrum Ambiental, with the aim to support innovation in the companies belonging to the urban waste management field and, this way, contribute to the most efficient and best suited solutions to benefit from the  opportunities and overcome the limitations on each territory.

The Centre de Tractament de Residus del Vallès Occidental and the Centre Integral de Valorització de Residus del Maresme are willing to become together the headquarters for the new Centre de Innovació i Tecnologies de Residus Municipals (Centre for Municipal Waste Innovation and Technologies).


The Consorci per a la Gestió de Residus del Vallès Occidental and the Consorci per al Tractament de Residus Sòlids Urbans del Maresme, have appplied jointly today to become the headquarters of the future Centre d‘Innovació i Tecnologies de Residus Municipals (CITREM) promoted by the Fundació Fòrum Ambiental. The application offers the new centre several waste treatment facilities, and the plants’ human and technical resources. Two of these plants offer to be the physical headquarters of the CITREM: the Centre de Tractament de Residus del Vallès Occidental (CTRV), located in Vacarisses, and the Centre Integral de Valorització de Residus del Maresme (CIVRM), located in Mataró.

The candidates present a decentralized model for the CITREM, with both locations; one in Mataró and another in Coll Cardús, in Vacarisses. With these two locations, a greater impact on the territory is intended, by promoting and generating synergies around the Barcelona metropolitan area, and creating a double focus of economic development which, in the short term, can bring about the creation of infrastructures or auxiliary services that, at the same time, may create jobs.

The presentation of the candidates has taken place this morning at the Col·legi d’Enginyers Industrials de Barcelona, with the participation of Joan Antoni Baron, chairman of the Consorci per al Tractament de Residus Sòlids Urbans del Maresme; Juan Carlos Sánchez, chairman of the Consorci per a la Gestió de Residus del Vallès Occidental; Josep Maria Serena, chairman of the Comissió de Medi ambient del Col·legi d’Enginyers Industrials de Catalunya (COEIC); Joan Majó, chairman of the Cercle per al Coneixement; Carles Canongia, mayor of Vacarisses and Ferran Pallàs, project director and consultant in environmental activities (IDOM).

The chairman of the Consorci per a la Gestió de Residus del Vallès Occidental, Joan Carles Sànchez explained that “The CITREM is an opportunity for the country, for the investments, for the implication of the economic network. And because the task carried out by the administrations and the public and private organizations enhances a sector that will grow, waste management, which may lead us to become a referent in the south of Europe and the Mediterranean, and for South America. Within Catalunya, the role of reference is a fact, and we still will move farther ahead. We still need to develop patents, for instance, and we have to move forward in research and innovation, an element CITREM could bring with it. But we have the elements to take this step and grow as a country.” He also explained that “The Consorci del Vallès Occidental has a clear will to work together with the Maresme consortium. The features of both organizations, the quality and development of the facilities started in the past years, and the possibility to create new added value gives us credit to apply as reliable candidates, and this can enable us, as a country, to look up.”

Joan Antoni Baron, chairman of the Consorci per al Tractament de Residus Sòlids Urbans del Maresme highlighted that this joint application is “A good example of networking”, and an example showing that “Added, we are more”. For Baron, “Our country has the ability to succeed if we work as a network”, and “The two consortiums can generate a critical mass of knowledge and inhabitants worth benefitting from.” In this sense, the chairman of the Consorci per al Tractament de Residus Sòlids Urbans del Maresme considers that this application to host the CITREM “Involves knowledge, technology and economic activity.” A synergy that needs to go hand in hand with “The support and the key role of the citizens”, and has to take advantage of the “Good infrastructures developed in the sectors of waste and communications in both areas.” In addition, Baron has invited everybody to the upcoming Recuwatt congress, for energy recovery, to be held in Mataró on 23 and 24 March. 

Likewise, Joan Majó pointed out that “The application is based on a mixture of research, development, testing, training... Creating knowledge and make it useful. Another element of the candidates programme is that at a time when we have difficulties of economic growth, it is especially important to turn our problems into growth engines and help the development of companies and economic activity. And a third element of this candidacy is the city in a network.”  

Josep Maria Serena, chairman of the Comissió de Medi ambient del Col·legi d’Enginyers Industrials de Catalunya (COEIC) wished the candidates good luck and pointed out that the CITREM has to be “The centre to show the technologies developed in our country.”

The mayor of Vacarisses, Carles Canongia, also attended the presentation, and he expressed his satisfaction for the candidacy and noted the new opportunities generated that can bring new values to waste management.

What is the CITREM

 The CITREM is a pioneer project in Spain, led by the Fundació Fòrum Ambiental, a renowned plataform for dialog and cooperation between companies, administrations and the rest of society, for a more sustainable development model. It started to reinforce the influence Catalunya can have elsewhere, thanks to its experience and degree of knowledge in waste management, attained by the public administrations, companies, universities and other participating social and economic agents.

With public and private cooperation, the CITREM will be useful to move towards the sustainable management of municipal waste in Spain and develop a modern, innovative, diversified and differentiated model to respond to the needs of the domestic market and, in addition, can be exported to other countries.

 The joint candidacy offers several infrastructures for waste management. From the basic model represented by the Coll Cardús landfill to the energy recovery from refuse in the Centre Integral of Mataró, through a wide variety of previous high efficiency mechanical and biological processes, like those in the Centre de Tractament de Residus del Vallès Occidental (CTRV). All this will enable a wide detailed knowledge of the different treatment operations, the measurement of the parameters defining quality and efficiency, and the theoretical and practical training of future technicians and managers who are to give sustainable and competitive solutions in the field of waste.

The two consortiums present a wide experience in management, a multifaceted first class technological park, the presence of the main private operators in the waste sector in the country, a great vitalizing capacity, and an excellent location and sorroundings.

 Given the requirements of the CITREM, the candidates commit to give spaces on the short, mid and long term.

From the begining, space for offices is granted in both facilities. In the Mataró venue, the necessary space will be prepared in the current Consorci building, and in the Coll Cardús location, space will be made in the refuse stabilization hall of the CTRV, and all the facilities and services needed will be available.

In addition, other venues are offered for use to the CITREM by the CTRV, like some land plots next to what is to become the future Centre d’Interpretació i Recursos (Centre of Interpretation and Resources) focused on waste prevention and management in Catalunya, which also will be built in Coll Cardús. As for the industrial buildings, the whole refuse estabilization hall of the CTRV is made available to locate here the first offices of the centre.

The CITREM will also serve as a testing lab to ensure the good results of the technological advances and the knowledge centre. For this reason, the candidates commit themselves to enable access to the different fluxes of urban waste, and to the quality and efficiency parameters, and access to all kinds of technical information.

The candidates also offer all the communication tools the two consortiums have and the educational activities they organize. In addition, both consortiums are pioneers in the organization of meetings like the REINNOVA and RECUWATT congresses, renowned international gatherings regarding innovation in waste management.

The candidates have also highlighted the presence of the main operators in the field that currently work in the Vallès Occidental and the Maresme centres.

 

News published on 17 February 2011