Improve the effectiveness of waste prevention policies in EU territories
The importance of waste prevention is nowadays fully recognized and generally considered as a priority within EU, national and regional authorities’ waste management strategies and plans, but many efforts need still to be done. One of the targets sets in the 5th Environment Action Programme (EAP) was to reduce the generation of municipal waste per capita per year to the average 1985 EU level (300 kg) by the year 2000 and then stabilize it at that level. This target is far from being reached and it has not been repeated in the 6th EAP, thus remaining a priority of the 6th EAP and of the new Waste Directive 2008/98/CE.
Pre-waste project is designed to improve the effectiveness of waste prevention policies in EU territories in order to significantly reduce waste production and hazardousness, through the close collaboration of local and regional authorities, public entities and other stakeholders. 

Pre-waste sub-objectives are: the definition of a common methodology for
efficient regional waste prevention policies, the exchange of Good Practices (GPs), the assessment of waste prevention actions efficiency and monitoring.
Partners have been selected among public entities directly involved in the planning or in the implementation of waste management policies according to their competences, e.g.: Marche Region-IT (LP), Ile-de-France Region Waste Management Observatory (ORDIF), Association of Cities&Regions for Recycling and for sustainable Resource management (ACR+), Municipality of Roquetas de Mar (ES),Municipality of Sofia (BG), Brussels Environment (IBGE), Public Cooperation Department of Ilfov County (RO), Municipality of Karlskrona (SE), Tampere Regional Solid Waste Management Ltd (FI) and WasteServ Malta.
All partners are engaged in the selection of at least 50 GPs and in the identification of a shared methodology that enables regional/local authorities to implement an effective waste prevention policy in term of planning and implementation.
In order to assess the transferability of one or more GPs in its own territory each partner carries out a feasibility study.
Beside, common indicators and a web tool aimed at assessing the effectiveness of waste prevention actions and politics will be defined.
As a final result, public entities, directly or indirectly involved on the project, will have an increased knowledge about good practices initiatives/policies experimented in Europe and competence on the evaluation of the waste prevention policies effectiveness, as to influence the design of local strategies for waste prevention. To support this, two joint interregional training sessions are foreseen.  
The organization of an European Conference and of 9 national events, plus the use of ACR+’ network as well as the partners’ networks, ensure that Pre-waste results will be spread throughout European targeted audience.