The Portuguese Environmental Agency (APA) is marking the start of summer with a communication and awareness-raising initiative aimed at combating excessive waste generation in Portugal; the campaign will travel across six districts of the country, from Braga to Portimão.

Between June and September, over 1.8 million tons of municipal waste were generated, with Portugal producing more than 480,000 tons in August alone. The latest phase of the “Let’s separate the waste” campaign aims to raise awareness about the time of year when waste generation spikes, as July and August represent the most critical period in Portugal, with August seeing the highest volume of waste produced.

Against this backdrop, APA highlights the urgent need for proper waste sorting during the summer holiday season, encouraging responsible behaviors that ensure waste is correctly routed for recycling. During this seasonal period—when families and friends gather at home or while out and about—proper waste sorting must not be neglected, in order to minimize environmental impact.

APA’s summer awareness initiative features a traveling truck—a “roadshow”—that invites communities to reflect on the importance of waste sorting. The 18-day campaign will visit the cities of Coimbra, Aveiro, Braga, Castelo Branco, Évora, and Portimão.

“Contrary to common belief, summer is consistently the period of highest waste generation in Portugal. This trend is expected to continue this year. However, it is important to emphasize that waste does not take a break or rest during the summer. With this initiative, we hope to engage communities in addressing a problem that concerns everyone, from the Algarve to the Minho,” states José Pimenta Machado, APA’s president.

The sustainable “Roadshow” trailer features a quiz testing the public’s knowledge of proper waste sorting, a sustainable consumption simulator that identifies consumer profiles, workshops for creating art from recycled materials, and various games for the whole family, among other activities.

The roadshow also features a mural that, at each stop, collects the excuses people give for not sorting their waste correctly—the “mural of excuses.” This thought-provoking mural aims to challenge the public to make fewer excuses and recycle more.

Roadshow Stops
June 19–21 – Coimbra (Praça da República)
June 26–28 – Aveiro
July 3–5 – Braga
July 10–12 – Castelo Branco
July 17–19 – Évora
July 24–26 – Portimão

The event takes place in all the listed cities on Fridays (9:00 AM–6:00 PM), Saturdays (9:00 AM–8:00 PM), and Sundays (11:00 AM–6:00 PM). The “Let’s separate the waste” campaign runs until the end of 2026.

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The Portuguese Environmental Agency (APA) issued a warning today regarding the urgent need for proper waste sorting during the summer holidays—a time when the highest volume of urban waste is generated, totaling nearly two million tons.

To mark the start of summer, APA is launching a new phase of its “Let’s separate the waste” awareness campaign—which began earlier this year—by touring six districts across the country with information and outreach activities. The agency highlights that waste generation peaks during this season, with August being the worst month. Last year, between June and September, over 1.8 million tons of urban waste were produced; August alone accounted for more than 480,000 tons, APA noted in a statement released today. With July and August being the most critical months, this new campaign phase aims to raise awareness about the need for proper waste sorting—even while on vacation—and to promote responsible behavior.

“During this seasonal period, when families and friends gather—whether at home or while out and about—proper waste sorting should not be abandoned; maintaining this practice helps reduce environmental impact,” APA emphasized in the statement.

The new “Let’s separate the waste” initiative features a traveling truck that serves as a base for activities inviting communities to reflect on the importance of waste sorting.

“Contrary to popular belief, summer is consistently the period of highest waste generation in Portugal. This trend is expected to continue this year. However, it is important to stress that waste production does not pause or take a break during the summer. Through this initiative, we hope to engage communities in addressing a problem that affects everyone, from the Algarve to the Minho region,” said APA’s president José Pimenta Machado, as quoted in the statement.

The roadshow features a quiz on public knowledge regarding proper waste separation, a sustainable consumption simulator that identifies consumer profiles, workshops for creating art from recycled materials, and games. It also includes an “mural of excuses” displaying the reasons often given for failing to separate waste correctly.

The “Let’s separate the waste” campaign runs until the end of the year.

The APA—a public institute within the State’s indirect administration—is the entity responsible for implementing environmental policies in Portugal, with a remit covering monitoring, planning and evaluation, licensing, and enforcement.

Source

The Portuguese Environmental Agency (APA) issued a warning today regarding the urgent need for proper waste separation during the summer holidays—a time when the highest volume of urban waste is generated, totaling nearly two million tons.

To mark the start of summer, the APA is taking its “Let’s separate the waste” awareness campaign—launched earlier this year—on a tour of six districts across the country. The initiative aims to inform and raise awareness, highlighting that waste generation peaks now, with August being the worst month.

Last year, between June and September, over 1.8 million tons of urban waste were produced; August alone accounted for more than 480,000 tons, the APA noted in a statement released today. With July and August being the most critical months, this new phase of the campaign seeks to emphasize the need for proper waste separation—even while on vacation—and to promote responsible behavior. “During this seasonal period, when families and friends gather at home or while out and about, proper waste separation should not be abandoned; maintaining it helps reduce environmental impact,” APA stressed in the statement.

The new phase of the “Let’s separate the waste” campaign features a traveling truck that serves as a base for initiatives inviting communities to reflect on the importance of waste separation.

“Contrary to common belief, summer is consistently the period of highest waste generation in Portugal. This trend is expected to continue this year. However, it is important to emphasize that waste does not take a break or rest during the summer. Through this initiative, we hope to engage communities in addressing a problem that affects everyone, from the Algarve to the Minho,” said APA’s president José Pimenta Machado, as quoted in the statement.

The roadshow features a quiz on public knowledge regarding proper waste separation, a sustainable consumption simulator that identifies consumer profiles, workshops for creating art from recycled materials, and games. It also includes an “mural of excuses” displaying the reasons often given for failing to separate waste correctly.

The “Let’s separate the waste” campaign runs until the end of the year.

The APA—a public institute within the State’s indirect administration—is the entity responsible for implementing environmental policies in Portugal, with a remit covering monitoring, planning and evaluation, licensing, and enforcement.

Source

The awareness-raising initiative takes the form of a traveling “roadshow” that will visit six districts across the country over the course of 18 days: Coimbra, Aveiro, Braga, Castelo Branco, Évora, and Portimão. The initiative runs from June 19 to July 26, with activities scheduled for Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. The truck features a waste-sorting quiz, a sustainable consumption simulator, workshops using recycled materials, and an “mural of excuses” designed to gather the most common reasons people give for not recycling. The Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) marked the start of summer by highlighting the rise in urban waste generation in Portugal during this season. According to released data, over 1.8 million tons of urban waste were produced in the country between June and September 2025. August saw the highest volume, exceeding 480,000 tons.

In light of these figures, the APA launched a new phase of the “Let’s separate the waste” campaign, aiming to raise awareness about the need for proper waste sorting during the holiday season. The agency emphasizes that July and August represent the most critical time of year for waste generation, countering the common perception that consumption drops during this period.

José Pimenta Machado, APA’s president, noted that “summer is consistently the period of highest waste generation in Portugal” and that “trash doesn’t take a break or rest during the summer.” He added that this trend is expected to continue this year, making it important to engage communities “in a problem that belongs to everyone, from the Algarve to the Minho.”

The awareness-raising initiative takes the form of a traveling “roadshow” that will visit six districts across the country over the course of 18 days: Coimbra, Aveiro, Braga, Castelo Branco, Évora, and Portimão. The initiative runs from June 19 to July 26, with activities taking place on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. The truck features a waste-sorting quiz, a sustainable consumption simulator, workshops using recycled materials, and an “mural of excuses” that collects the most common reasons people give for not recycling.

The APA, as the entity responsible for implementing environmental policies in Portugal, highlights the urgent need to maintain proper waste separation during the summer to ensure correct routing for recycling and to reduce environmental impact. The “Let’s separate the waste” campaign will remain active until the end of 2026.

Source

The Portuguese Environmental Agency (APA) is launching a new campaign to raise awareness about the rise in urban waste generation during the summer. In 2025, between June and September, over 1.8 million tons of urban waste were produced; in August alone, Portugal generated more than 480,000 tons.

The latest phase of the “Let’s separate the waste” campaign aims to highlight the time of year when waste generation spikes, as July and August mark the most critical period in Portugal—with August seeing the highest volume of waste produced.

The communication initiative will tour six districts across the country over 18 days, featuring roadshows in Coimbra, Aveiro, Braga, Castelo Branco, Évora, and Portimão.

“Contrary to popular belief, summer is consistently the period with the highest waste generation in Portugal. This trend is expected to continue this year. However, it is important to emphasize that trash doesn’t take a break or rest during the summer. With this initiative, we hope to engage communities in an issue that affects everyone, from the Algarve to the Minho region,” says José Pimenta Machado, APA’s President.

Roadshow activities include a quiz testing public knowledge on proper waste sorting, a sustainable consumption simulator that identifies consumer profiles, workshops for creating art from recycled materials, and various family-friendly games, among other interactive activities.

The roadshow also features a mural—dubbed the “mural of excuses”—that collects the reasons people give for not sorting their waste correctly at each stop.

Roadshow stops:
June 19–21 – Coimbra (Praça da República)
June 26–28 – Aveiro
July 3–5 – Braga
July 10–12 – Castelo Branco
July 17–19 – Évora
July 24–26 – Portimão

The “Let’s separate the waste” campaign continues until the end of 2026.

Source