Italy has a new app to promote separate collection of waste

The "Rifiutologo" will be an online assistant to recycling. First launched in Padua, a small city in the north of Italy, it was conceived by AcegasApsAmga (an energy and environmental services supplier) and Hera Group as a useful tool to avoid mistakes and help citizenship with a correct collection of waste.

Rifiutologo is an app - downloadable from the net - through which by inserting the name of an item or of a material it shows where it should go. The system is grounded on a database containing about 1,500 references, expandable under clients' prompts. In fact, if an object is not present, the citizen can highlight it and forward a request for a new insertion. This method fosters a mutual-learning process with the citizenry. As a result, it is a sort of "crowd-sourcing" where the citizen is a protagonist.

The innovative App works very easily. It is possible to access from the website www.acegaspsamga.it (Clients Area- Environment Section), digit the area of residence and click on the right "Environment" zone. After that, the user can insert the name of the object he is interested in. The system was also studied to support the client with all the variables connected to a specific piece. For instance, if he digits "bottle", Rifiutologo will immediately suggest a range of detailed options available, such as wine bottle, plastic bottles, drugs bottles and cosmetics bottles.

As a matter of fact, some objects can be very hard to categorize - namely the cat litter, polystyrene, cotton sticks, eggshells and much more - and this brand new app aims at eliminating the confusion around this process, making recycling part of citizens' routine, avoiding any conception of being a burden. Rifiutologo clearly tells where that specific item goes according to the categories, i.e. organic, paper, plastic, humid, and dried.

Finally, citizens can also benefit form an virtual handbook connected to Rifiutologo, to raise their awareness on recycling and the products they buy.

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