Honourable First Lady,
Ladies and gentlemen,
I will start my speech a little unorthodox, as unorthodox as the motto "Zero, the major" that we have chosen for our actions today. You will rightly wonder how Zero can mean the Major, that is to say, the greatest, since in mathematics we learned that a number must be greater than zero in order to be considered positive. In fact, to make it even more unorthodox, in this case the positive for us is the minus. And I'll explain.
We all have numbers in a straight line in our minds. Above zero we put the positive ones and below zero the negative ones. With that in mind, anything to be positive must move upwards. However, for the environment, for our Earth, what is true is exactly the opposite. We want zero on everything and to achieve this we need to reverse our course in terms of environmental management.
I recall that among the things the President of the Republic stressed to us on the day we took office was that we must all act as "the living example, the positive role model for citizens, for society". Putting this directive into practice, within the framework of legality, loyalty to the Constitution and European directives, and having as our priority the improvement of the quality of life of citizens, we are today proceeding with this joint initiative with the First Lady to transform the Presidential Palace building into a Zero Waste to Landfill building, a Zero Waste to Landfill building.
With this initiative, we are transforming the Presidential Palace into a positive model for the transition to a circular economy, within a framework that goes beyond environmental stewardship. In this way, we are actively renewing our commitment to protect this place, fully considering that the impact of our actions must have a positive contribution to the environment and a positive example to every citizen of this country.
By converting the presidential building into a Zero Waste to Landfill building, we mean that all waste streams have been rationally managed with 100% verification that they did not end up in landfills, but were reused or recycled in licensed facilities. Through today's initiative, the Presidential Office contributes to the conservation of resources and the reduction of its carbon footprint and at the same time is a practical example of upgrading and protecting the environment in our country. Moreover, the recent Earth Day, on the occasion of which today's initiative is announced, is a reminder that we all have a responsibility to protect our planet and its resources for future generations. This is what we are doing today.
It should be noted that all those working at the Presidential Palace are involved in this context, as they will receive relevant training. At the same time, we clarify that when we refer to the Presidential Palace we do not only mean a building but also the homonymous Park of about 15 hectares that surrounds it and which, apart from the forest recreation services it offers to visitors, has acquired in recent years an important environmental/ecological role, since it hosts several species of our country's fauna. Thus, in the context of supporting these species, which either live permanently in the Presidential Palace Park or use it occasionally to meet their needs, the following have been implemented to enhance biodiversity:
[*]Renaming of the orchard to "Pollinator Garden" and its enrichment with beekeeping plants, to support both the bee population and other insects that perform a pollinator role (butterflies, beetles, etc.). [*]Placement of two artificial nests for human birds and ten artificial nests for small bees (chickadees or pebbles). [*]Placement of five nests for bats. [*]Installation of two watering troughs to meet water needs, especially during the summer months. [*]Maintenance of existing dry stone walls and creation of new ones for the purpose of supporting herpetofauna (lizards and snakes).
In the coming months, there will be an additional enrichment of the Bishop's Garden with fruit trees (mesquite, pomegranate, golden apple, mulberry, grape, fig) to provide food for various species of birds and mammals, such as the fruit bat, the well-known nightjar, hedgehogs, fritillaries, sparrows, etc.).
In addition. The composters were provided by the Municipality of Strovolos, whom we thank. In addition to the persons who will use the composters, the staff of the Presidential Palace including the Presidential Guard will be trained in the use of household composters with the ultimate goal of providing them for everyone's household needs.
[*]Complete end to the use of plastic bottles. For this purpose and to meet the needs of those who work at the Presidential Palace, Cyta has provided us with these reusable water bottles bearing the campaign slogan "Zero, Major".
In addition to the above, a procedure is being promoted for. [*]Supply of an additional seven water coolers with filters and UV lamp to meet all the needs of the employees at the Presidential Palace. [*]Provision of recycling bins in the Presidential Palace premises (inside and outside the offices) and creation of a communal "environmental corner" with all the recycling bins. I am pleased that the presidents of all the recycling systems we have with us today have informed us that they will provide all the bins needed to meet the needs. [*]List of all the studies that need to be done to consider a secondary grey water treatment system at the Presidential Palace. [*]Inventory of all waste streams (prunings, waste from construction work, lamps, inks, wood, pipes, cables, electrical/electronic appliances, etc.) and their rational management in licensed facilities. [*]Training of all staff on food management, with the ultimate aim of reducing food waste and therefore organic waste, which is a major goal we want to achieve. To this end, we have with us today the Solea High School, which is already implementing a food waste reduction programme.
To achieve Zero Waste to Landfill verification we need to recycle or reuse more than 95% of our waste. Twelve months from today we will be able to tell you the quantitative data on the achievement of the targets we have just announced.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Your presence here today confirms the importance of the project we are undertaking and that its implementation needs the participation of each and every one of you and of us. It is a team effort which, in order to be achieved, needs your assistance, which I know we have, and for that we thank you very much.
This is the only time that we want to see negative signs from the Presidency which will lead us to zero, which is major for our country. The minus becomes the new plus one could say regarding the environment. Plus over minus makes plus. So this is the equation we will use for the President's Office.
(AF/EXP)
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