24.11.2023.
Six scrap cars were removed from Šipan in the drive conducted in cooperation with the Environmental Protection Fund and the City of Dubrovnik.“The Fund has been implementing this drive for several years,” explained deputy director of the Fund Mirko Budiša. “In cooperation with the local communities on the island, we have so far removed and disposed of around 100 scrap cars. This year, four more local units, Dubrovnik being one of them, joined the drive for the removal of 33 vehicles. We’re here on Šipan today, and we want to have the same action very soon on Iž, Dugi otok and Pašman. Upholding the principles of the circular economy, we want not only to prevent the pollution of the environment, but also to ensure additional value of these vehicles through recovery,” said Budiša.
The fleet in Croatia is rather old. According to the Centre for Vehicles of Croatia (CVH), the average age of cars is 14 years, so it is to be expected that the number of scrap vehicles will grow. Between 30 and 40 thousand vehicles per year are handed over to the fund for treatment.
Vinko Vukušić, who is in charge of the end-of-life vehicles management programme at the Fund, advised the citizens to report such vehicles and have them removed in a timely manner. “When citizens realise their car is coming to an end of its useful life, they should contact a licensed collector either by telephone or by email, and arrange to have the car picked up,” said Vukušić, adding that there was a tall-free line 0800 02 04 for this programme. “In addition to a free pick-up, owners of such vehicles will get adequate compensation of 13 cents per one kilogramme of weight of the handed-over vehicle.”
The vehicles collected in this way are taken for further treatment to licensed treatment operators, in order to use all usable components or provide raw material for further use. European practice has shown that as many as 85% of cars are successfully recycled, and the new End-of-life vehicles Regulation aims to increase this percentage.
