A two-day international conference on the protection of the Adriatic Sea environment and the sustainable waste management in coastal towns of Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Albania opened in Dubrovnik on Monday.

Djuro Horvat, the CEO of the waste management company Tehnix which organised the conference, said in his opening remarks that the problem of municipal waste pollution had first emerged 50 years ago, and has since grown into a global problem.

“We need to solve this problem using knowledge and technology, and not conflict. Tehnix is a leader in environmental protection, with contracts around the world, and I am glad that we have organised a conference like this in Dubrovnik,” Horvat said.

Dubrovnik, which is one of the premier tourist magnets in the country owing to its well preserved medieval walls, is affected by the problem more than other Croatian coastal cities, as strong southerly winds in the winter months routinely bring large amounts of floating waste from Montenegro and Albania.

Croatian MEP Tonino Picula said that plastics, a manufacturing material invented only 150 years ago, had initially been considered cutting edge technology and a progressive development, but that over time it revealed its dark side, with plastic waste endangering environment systems.

He said that some 8 million tonnes of plastic are thought to end up in the world’s seas and oceans every year. Out of all the plastic used some 40 percent never gets recycled, and the working life of an ordinary plastic shopping bag is only 15 minutes.

“The European Parliament has passed a number of directives intended to make member countries raise this percentage and recycle 90 percent of their plastic waste by the year 2050. This also serves as an encouragement to countries bordering the EU. Croatia currently borders three EU candidate countries, and this conference will provide a regional framework for our efforts, and encourage our neighbours to treat plastic waste in a more responsible manner,” Picula said.

The conference has brought together Croatian MPs and government officials, MEPs, town officials, utility companies, banks, businesses, fishermen, and environmentalists.

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