Quercus criticized the Government's decision to build a waste incinerator in the Algarve, considering it an "anachronistic and inadequate" solution to address the exhaustion of the region's two landfills. The environmental association argues that the measure is in "complete counter-cyclical" direction with the PERSU 2030 targets and with the climate goals assumed by Portugal, in addition to producing more polluting gases than fossil fuels and constituting a solution contrary to the circular economy.
The Algarve currently produces 400,000 tons of waste per year, with 85% destined for landfills that risk being exhausted by 2027. Quercus regrets that this situation results from decades of disinvestment in sustainable waste management and that the weight of the tourism sector makes correct processing difficult during peak demand seasons.
As alternatives to the incinerator, the association proposes adjusting reduction and recycling targets to seasonal fluctuations, strengthening existing mechanical and biological treatment facilities, high-efficiency door-to-door selective collection, implementation of the "Pay As You Throw" taxation system, and municipal community and home composting projects.
Quercus also demands that the Government disclose the studies underpinning the decision to proceed with the incinerator, accusing the executive of "lack of political will" to consider less harmful alternatives for the environment.
