10.06.2026.
After the announcement of protest regarding the work of the Green Transition and the County Waste management Centre Kaštijun, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Fund underline that in the past years the Croatian Government provided significant resources for the establishment and improvement of the waste management system in Istria.The municipal waste management system is based on clearly set out competencies and local self-government units are responsible for its functioning, or to be more precise their utility companies and companies that manage waste management centres. The Government of the Republic of Croatia continuously provides a legal framework and financial support for the construction of infrastructure across Croatia, and especially in Istria.
The Croatian Government has provided close to 63 million euros for the improvement of the waste management system in the Istrian County, including the construction of the Kaštijun Waste Management Centre with transfer stations. For Kaštijun alone, a project worth in total 33.7 million euros, more than 22.4 million euros of European funds and an additional 3.2 million euros from the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund have been secured. Moreover, an additional EUR 2.57 million has been provided to improve the waste treatment process and reduce environmental impact.
At the same time, transfer stations in Umag, Poreč, Labin, Buzet, Rovinj and Pazin were financed. The total value of these investments amounted to EUR 6.21 million, with the Fund providing almost EUR 4.91 million, or as much as 80% of eligible costs.
Even during its operation, the Government of the Republic of Croatia, by means of the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund, is assisting CWMC Kaštijun and and bears part of the costs of RDF disposal. Last year alone the disposal of 15,000 tonnes of RDF was co-financed, and in 2026 an additional 700 thousand euros of support was approved to continue co-financing these costs.
In addition, the Government of the Republic of Croatia financed almost all key elements of the modern waste management system in Istria - civic amenity sites, purchase of municipal vehicles, educational campaigns, implementation of separate waste collection projects, and remediation and closure of landfills, as well as the procurement of approximately 120,000 containers for separate waste collection, for which about EUR 4.5 million in grants were provided.
This has created all the prerequisites for curbside separation of primarily paper, plastic and biowaste. The rate of separate waste collection in the County of Istria increased from 26.9% in 2021 to 37.03% in 2024. However, this result is still not sufficient to meet the national and European targets, which for 2025 amount to 55%.
Significant amounts of waste that should be collected separately, especially biowaste, still end up in mixed municipal waste that is delivered to Kaštijun, resulting in unpleasant odours felt by the local population. This is an issue that all Istrian utility companies must work on in cooperation with CWMC Kaštijun.
The Fund has also implemented six food waste prevention projects and approved 84 thousand euros to hotels and public institutions in the Istrian County for the purchase of food waste digesters. In addition, through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, EUR 4.7 million has been provided for nine companies from the Istrian County for investments in recycling plants for construction and biowaste, and for more efficient use of resources in accordance with the principles of the circular economy.
That is the reason why additional burdening of the Centre is not the long-term solution; the answer lies in increasing the rate of separately collected waste at local level.
The Government of the Republic of Croatia, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Green Transition and the Environmental Protection and Energy Efficiency Fund will maintain their professional and financial support to all stakeholders in the waste management system. However, in case of suspicion of irregularities or non-compliance, the competent authorities will carry out appropriate supervisory procedures.
We reiterate that in the past period, the Croatian Government has provided substantial financial resources and the necessary infrastructure for the development of the waste management system. Further viability of the system, including the achievement of the goals of separate waste collection and the efficient organisation of its disposal, primarily depends on the work and cooperation of local self-government units, utility companies, and system managers in practice.
The investments made in recent years in Istria provide a solid foundation for achieving these goals and additional raising of environmental standards.
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