From June 26 to 28, the city of Aveiro will host a stop for the national campaign “Let’s separate the waste”, promoted by the Portuguese Environmental Agency (APA). This initiative aims to raise public awareness regarding the proper sorting of urban waste, particularly during the summer months—a period that sees a significant increase in waste generation across Portugal.

The event will take place at Praça Marquês de Pombal and will feature a traveling truck—known as the “Roadshow”—that tours various cities across the country, offering environmental awareness activities for all age groups.

Over the three-day period, visitors can participate in various interactive activities, including a quiz on recycling and waste sorting, a sustainable consumption simulator that identifies each participant’s environmental profile, art workshops using recycled materials, and various games designed for families and children.

A key element of the campaign is the “Mural of Excuses,” a space displaying some of the most common reasons citizens give for failing to sort their waste correctly. The initiative aims to challenge the public to move past these excuses and adopt more responsible daily habits.

Summer is the time of year when the most waste is produced.

The campaign comes at a time when APA is highlighting a reality often unknown to the public: summer is the time of year when Portugal generates the most urban waste.

Data released by the Portuguese Environmental Agency (APA) indicate that, between June and September 2025, over 1.8 million tons of urban waste were produced. In August alone, more than 480,000 tons of waste were recorded, making it the month with the highest annual output.

According to APA, the increase in travel, outdoor activities, vacations, and consumption associated with the summer season contributes to this rise in waste generation, making it essential to reinforce recycling habits and the proper sorting of materials.

José Pimenta Machado, president of the Portuguese Environmental Agency, emphasizes that “contrary to common belief, summer is consistently the period of highest waste generation in Portugal,” adding that the campaign aims to engage communities in addressing an issue that requires the contribution of every citizen.

Campaign visits several districts

After Aveiro, the roadshow will travel to other Portuguese cities, including Braga, Castelo Branco, Évora, and Portimão. The “Let’s separate the waste” campaign runs until the end of 2026 and is part of a broader set of communication and awareness-raising initiatives aimed at promoting more sustainable urban waste management and increasing recycling rates in Portugal.

Schedule in Aveiro
June 26 (Friday): 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM
June 27 (Saturday): 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM
June 28 (Sunday): 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM

Participation is free and open to the general public.

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With the arrival of summer this Sunday, waste generation in Portugal is reaching alarming levels. To raise public awareness about this issue, the Portuguese Environmental Agency (APA) has launched an initiative that will tour the country until July 26, featuring educational activities for the whole family.

Ana Cristina Carrola, a member of the APA’s board of directors, identifies the shift in routine caused by the traditional summer holiday season—combined with a more relaxed, laid-back mindset—as a primary driver of the spike in waste generation between June and August. Last year alone, 1.8 million tons of waste were produced during this period. “We have seen a very significant increase in waste generation over the last two years. In 2024, there was an increase of nearly 4%, and in 2025, we recorded figures between 1.5% and 2%. We are concerned by this rise, which comes on top of waste generation levels that were already above the EU average,” the APA official explained to JN.

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A mobile unit—housed in a truck—is currently in Coimbra to raise awareness about the importance of recycling, particularly regarding biowaste.

Recycling is increasingly becoming a crucial step for every household. With the implementation of the “Volta” packaging deposit-refund system, attention has once again turned to this topic; to ensure renewed focus on the various types of recycling, the Portuguese Environmental Agency (APA) has launched a new initiative to inform both the general public and municipal authorities.

“Currently, we capture about 14% of biowaste, but we aim to reach 60% by 2030; we have a long road ahead,” explained Ana Cristina Carrola, a board member at the APA. According to the expert, current data shows that over 50% of biowaste ends up in landfills, rendering it unusable. “All the value that could be extracted from this resource remains buried,” she noted.

As Ana Cristina Carrola explained, this type of “waste” often ends up mixed with general household trash, making it impossible to salvage or transform into “useful” material. “Biowaste is highly valuable; it can be reused in various ways—such as for fuel—but if it isn’t separated, it ends up with a very short lifecycle.” To extend this lifecycle, the first step is to explain to the public how to separate it and, above all, what it actually is. “Biowaste includes, for example, uneaten food—such as peanut shells, orange peels, and bread scraps—as well as garden leaves and grass clippings,” highlighted Paulo Mansilha, one of the technicians staffing the APA’s mobile unit. The truck arrived in Coimbra yesterday and will be at Praça da República informing the community until Sunday. “To make use of this resource, it is necessary to separate it into the brown bin—and that is what we want to highlight and help show people the importance of,” the young man revealed.

To ensure it reaches more people, the APA roadshow will travel to various locations across the country. Aveiro, Braga, Castelo Branco, Évora, and Portimão are the next stops, ensuring that every district is informed not only about what bio-waste is but also about how to request the brown bin from their municipality. “There are already 200 municipalities offering this, and we want that number to keep growing,” the official stated.

Roadshow featuring activities and giveaways for kids

The primary focus of the Portuguese Environmental Agency (APA) is to educate the community in order to change current habits and evolve society for the future. To this end, one of the strategies adopted was to organize small games and challenges for children.

“We have a range of games, activities, and giveaways so they can come here, learn, and challenge themselves,” explains Paulo Mansilha, one of the representatives at the APA roadshow. “If children gain this knowledge and get into the habit of sorting their waste, then we will see change,” he noted, confident that the future will bring a shift in behavior. However, this is already the second phase of an initiative that also aims to raise awareness about overconsumption and the lack of care taken when sorting waste. “Many households still do not recycle at the source—meaning they do not allow the waste to be recovered and put to good use,” Ana Cristina Carrola, a member of the APA’s board of directors, told the Diário de Coimbra newspaper.

Through these on-the-ground activities engaging various age groups, the hope is that more and more people will adopt the use of the brown bin and “gradually” bring about “an important change”—one that could lead to the recovery of a resource currently being “lost” due to a lack of knowledge.

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