Another cash handout to the media: 10 million euros for promoting recycling

The world is on fire, but the government focuses on communication and promotion
programs. The Hellenic Recycling Agency (HRA) is preparing to allocate 10 million euros to
media of all kinds, a decision made at the beginning of August, while fires were raging once
again in Evia and officials were warning of a difficult month due to the expected winds.

What’s most striking is that this 10 million euro “communication program”, which could be
increased by 50% or even 100% through an option clause, aims to highlight the value of
recycling. This comes at a time when Greece continues to bury 80% of its waste, one of the
highest rates in Europe. Recycling and other methods (source separation, reuse) to prevent
waste burial have been stuck at 20% for years, despite numerous projects announced by the
Ministry of Environment and Energy in 2019 that have yet to be implemented.

Μονάδες Επεξεργασίας Απορριμμάτων: Στον αέρα όλα τα έργα – «Τρύπα» 250 εκατομμυρίων ευρώ

Indicative of the deadlock that has emerged is the difficulty many municipalities faced in
removing thousands of tons of biowaste generated by the mandatory clearing of plots
across the country under the threat of fines. This waste, consisting of prunings and dry
grass, should have ideally been sent to specialized management facilities that do not exist.
Many municipalities reported being unable to send it for burial, and there are indications
that much of it may have ended up in forests and ravines, turning into kindling with the first
seasonal winds.

Nevertheless, on August 5, 2024, shortly before Vassilis Kikilias issued a “red alert” for the
period leading up to the Dormition of the Virgin Mary (August 15) and was proven right by
the fire that broke out in Varnavas on Sunday, August 11, the Hellenic Recycling Agency
(HRA) posted on Diavgeia the decision titled: “Approval of the Communication Program of
the Hellenic Recycling Organization to inform and raise awareness about prevention, reuse,
recycling, and the circular economy in general for the years 2024-2026.”

(pdf ΕΔΩ)

It is evident that this was an expedited process, as the relevant proposal was reportedly
submitted by HRA’s CEO, Alexandra Togia, a long-time associate of Dora Bakoyannis, only a
little earlier, on July 29, 2024. Based on this proposal, the Board of Directors unanimously
decided to:

• The preparation of the tender documents for an open electronic competition above
  the thresholds (including technical specifications, project scope, and timeline) for the
  information and awareness campaigns that will cover the Organization's needs for
  the coming years.
• The approval of the Communication Program for the years 2024-2026, with a total
  budget of 8,000,000 euros, plus applicable VAT, for a total of 9,920,000 euros.
• Submission of the Communication Program 2024-2026 for approval to the General
  Secretariat of Information and Communication (GSIC) under the Presidency of the
  Government, Directorate of Media Supervision, Department of Supervised Entities
  and Communication Actions of the GSIC, and registration of the advertising
  expenditure amounts in the "PASITHEA" application of the GSIC website by the
  competent department.

An itemized breakdown of expenses is included, almost equally divided between those for
design and production, which are paid to the respective companies, and those allocated to
media outlets for publishing this material.

Specifically, it states: 

• €3,844,000 will be allocated to HRA support activities, including “the design and
  implementation of all proposed actions (creative work, website renewal, and
  management, events, public surveys, media planning, digital planning)”. Part of this
  amount will be used to pay the "project management and implementation team for
  communication actions”.
• A separate budget of €124,000 is foreseen for the “Design of the Communication
  Strategy and Action Plan”.
• However, this does not include the production of print, electronic, audio-visual, and
  other information materials – promotional content – for which a separate budget
  of €620,000 is allocated.
• Promotion on “Social Media & Internet (such as YouTube, Google)” has a budget
  of €992,000.
• A further €620,000 is earmarked for "organizing information, awareness and
  promotional events".

The total budget remaining for "Media Advertising" is €3,720,000, which will be distributed
as follows:

1. National television advertising: €954,800
2. Advertising on regional television stations: €409,200
3. National radio advertising: €434,000
4. Regional radio advertising: €186,000
5. National print advertising: €520,800
6. Advertising in Panhellenic Print Media (possibly a mistake, as it could mean Regional): €223,200
7. Website advertising: €992,000

Recycling is about to experience “glory days”, even if only on a communication level, and
this will happen thanks to HRA’s funds, which continue to grow despite the lack of any
tangible achievements. The revenue mainly comes from:

• The fee we pay every time we buy a plastic bag, which costs us 9 cents. It is
  estimated that at least 10 million euros are collected annually just from plastic bags.
• The fees charged when we use single-use packaging for coffee or food (plastic cups,
  disposable containers), although it is unclear whether this revenue actually reaches
  HRA due to a lack of oversight.
• The government’s “injection” of 129 million euros into the Hellenic Recycling Agency
  (HRA) last December, was intended as compensation for the landfill fees imposed on
  municipalities for burying waste instead of recycling it, as recently reported by Data
  Journalists.

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