The allocation of distinctions was made within the framework of the closing of the Sustainable Uruguay Expo, held between June 10 and 12 at the Municipal Velodrome.
“If there is any issue in which the human being must show generosity, it is in the care of the environment with current and future generations,” said the President of the Republic, Luis Lacalle Pou.
The first edition of the event brought together more than 100 entrepreneurs and was visited by some 17,000 people. This Sunday the 12th, the president attended, accompanied by the Ministers of the Environment, Adrián Peña; Tourism, Tabaré Viera, and Livestock, Agriculture and Fishing, Fernando Mattos.
At the close of the meeting, and in the presence of various national authorities, the winning projects of the different categories of the National Award for Sustainable Uruguayan Environment were distinguished, which until 2021 was called Natural Uruguay. Educational centers, companies with projects related to the environment, local governments and civil society organizations were the defined areas to participate.
During the award ceremony, Lacalle Pou was invited to speak a few words and assured: “What we saw here today, in the largest and smallest companies, is the enthusiasm to do things that generate prosperity, improvement, but common good. If there is any subject in which the human being must show generosity, it is in the care of the environment with current and future generations”.
Peña, meanwhile, expressed satisfaction with the good reception of the event and outlined the strategic lines of the administration. He highlighted the Arazatí project, which will ensure drinking water for the next 50 years for the metropolitan area. He reported that more than 80% of the country’s industrial effluents are monitored in real time and that the main challenge is diffuse pollution, which is being worked on arduously.
Regarding sanitation, he indicated that the Government’s goal is to reach 50 localities in the interior of the country, for which it will invest 250 million dollars. Waste management is another area considered key, and since November last year Uruguay has had a comprehensive national plan, he said.
The minister also mentioned the advances in the management of single-use plastics and, in particular, of disposable containers. He added that this year a decree will be issued to manage the disposal of electrical devices and that it is planned to close landfills in 2025 and begin to transform garbage into fuel (methanol) to be used in shipping transport.
Regarding climate change, Peña recalled the agreements signed by Uruguay and expressed that, despite the fact that adaptation plans have been designed, funds from abroad are still awaited to implement them.
He also mentioned the 17 protected areas in the country, the circular economy, sustainable finance, validation, certifications and the incorporation of environmental issues in national production, “perhaps the most important thing that the Ministry of Environment and to Livestock”, he reflected.
