Instead of trucks, waste should be transported by ships

Every day, more than 150 trucks transport waste to the landfill in Vinci, often from the farthest parts of the city, covering 47 km in one direction only. That's why the current method of waste removal in Belgrade is not sustainable, warn the organization "Belgrade on the Move" and propose the introduction of ships to transport waste directly from the rivers, as is done in Rotterdam.

"Those trucks pass daily through the busiest roads in the city, including Bulevar Kralja Aleksandra and Smederevski put, additionally creating congestion, noise and pollution," they state and propose "the introduction of river waste transport as a modern and sustainable model".

They remind that reducing the number of trucks on the roads would increase efficiency and reduce pollution in urban areas.

"Transportation of waste by barges would be far more efficient, environmentally friendly and financially profitable in the long term. Just one barge can replace up to 50 trucks, which would significantly reduce the load on roads and fuel consumption, with lower emissions of harmful gases."

They believe that it is necessary to build a dock for barges on the Danube, in the immediate vicinity of the landfill in Vinča, and that it is therefore necessary to urgently prepare an expert feasibility study that would determine the optimal locations for the construction of transfer stations on the banks of the Sava and Danube, where the waste would be previously selected and prepared for further transport by river.

They say that "this system of transshipment centers would simultaneously enable a better primary selection of waste and relieve existing landfills, with the possibility of introducing modern models of recycling and processing."

And they conclude that "the use of river roads would relieve city traffic, improve the ecological image of the city and enable more efficient waste management."