engleski

Urban waste: challenges and opportunities in tourism destinations

Waste can be observed as an ecological problem, but it can also be approached as a resource used to manufacture new goods. The European Union has set high goals in waste management in its legal framework. The Republic of Croatia, as a member of the EU, will have to respect the set requirements. The main aim of this paper is to analyse waste management in counties across Croatia with special emphasis on the cities and municipalities in the Opatija Riviera area, as well as to monitor the amount of urban waste generated by tourism. The Opatija Riviera is the study area of this research as the inhabitants and tourists in cities generate more and more urban waste, which is closely connected to unsustainable patterns of consumption and production. The authors use different methods in the paper such as analysis of the existing condition, observation, and the accumulation, processing and interpretation of secondary data. The main source of data are statistical reports and reports on the business conducted by municipal companies. The research question is whether an increase in tourism indicators affects an increase in waste in a tourism destination. The authors indicate towards a need to change consumption and production in order for citizens to generate less waste, while at the same time using waste as a resource in the process of circular economy. Inadequate waste management contributes to environmental pollution, air pollution and the intensification of climate change. The results show that the analysed tourism destinations do not record an increase in total waste despite an increase in tourism indicators. The paper proves that the observed units of local self-government are more actively adhering to EU regulations pertaining to waste management. The paper’s contribution lies in the knowledge that waste in cities has three different values in terms of ecology and economy – raw materials, energy and the environment. In the scientific sense the paper contributes to existing literature, while in the practical sense the paper advises decision-makers in units of local self- government that tourist cities in the Opatija Riviera area need to promptly implement the circular management model, undergo a digital transformation and implement smart solutions. All of these projects fall within the scope of the European Union’s next financial period (2021- 2027), which additionally shows just how important these issues have become. The paper further contributes by presenting and proposing solutions to numerous challenges, as well as emphasizing the presented tourist destination as examples of good practices.

urban waste ; circular economy ; tourism destination ; city

Rad je dio znanstvenog projekta Sveučilišta u Rijeci "uniri-drustv-18-22".