The goal with “Zero Waste Point” is zero waste in Karatay.

As part of a project carried out with the support of the district residents, the central Karatay District Municipality of Konya has collected a total of 1,260 tons of waste to date. Moreover, citizens who bring their waste to the “Zero Waste Point” Waste Collection Centers established by the municipality are also given various gifts.

In order to prevent environmental and soil pollution, contribute to the spread of “Zero Waste” awareness among a broader segment of society, and support the recovery of separately collected waste into the economy, Karatay Municipality launched the project called “Zero Waste Point” on June 5, 2022. Within the framework of the “Zero Waste” initiative being implemented nationwide, Karatay Municipality established “Zero Waste Point” Waste Collection Centers in front of the Karatay Traffic Education Park in Ulubatlı Hasan Neighborhood and on Aslanlı Kışla Street. The municipality also aims to establish two new centers on Sedirler Street in Aziziye Neighborhood and Fetih Street in Selim Sultan Neighborhood.

Citizens can bring any recyclable waste they have sorted at home to these centers, thereby preventing environmental and soil pollution while earning various gifts based on the amount of waste they bring. In this project, which operates on a point system, citizens earn different points for 8 different types of waste: glass, paper, cardboard, waste batteries, electronic waste, plastic, vegetable waste oil, and metal waste. With the points accumulated, citizens can choose the gifts they desire from a predetermined pool of gifts.

To date, the “Zero Waste Point” project has reached over 7,300 citizens in the district, and the collected waste is sent to recycling facilities to be converted back into raw materials. This not only makes significant contributions to the national economy but also prevents environmental pollution. Since the project was launched on June 5, 2022, a total of 1,257 tons of waste has been recycled, preventing the cutting down of 10,234 trees, saving 751,593 liters of oil, saving 4,197,490 KWH of energy, and preventing the release of 132,509 kilograms of greenhouse gases into the environment. Additionally, 16,856 cubic meters of water has been saved, and 13 million 2 thousand cubic meters of water pollution has been prevented. Thus, during this period, the Karatay Municipality has provided over 5 million TL in economic added value to the municipality.

“For a Clean and Livable Karatay”

Karatay Mayor Hasan Kılca stated, “As a municipality, we are carrying out important projects to control, dispose of, or recycle the waste generated in our district within the framework of sustainable development goals, which we attach great importance to. In addition to the Zero Waste Project, our project, Zero Waste Point, is also continuing successfully. Our project has received great interest from our citizens. Through this project, which has significantly contributed to our Zero Waste and Recycling Action Plan, the collection and recovery of hundreds of kilograms of recyclable waste have been achieved to date. I would like to thank our citizens who support this project, especially those who have contributed. Just as we have done so far, we will continue to serve our citizens, our district, and our country with new and unique projects.”