Riga, Sept 12 (LETA) - Riga will see an increase in waste management fees in October and January, according to a draft decision supported by the housing and environment committee of the Riga City Council.

The final decision will have to be taken at a Riga City Council meeting.

From October 1, the fee for unsorted municipal waste management will increase by 0.95 percent to 1.18 percent, depending on the management area.

From January next year, the fee for unsorted municipal waste management will increase by 2.1 percent to 2.41 percent, depending on the management area.

Thus, from October 1, the total fee for unsorted municipal waste management in Zone 1 managed by Clean R will be EUR 27.38 per cubic meter, in Zone 2 managed by Clean R it will be EUR 27.67 per cubic meter, in Zone 3 managed by Lautus Vide - EUR 24.51 per cubic meter, and in Zone 4 managed by Eco Baltia Vide - EUR 26.83 per cubic meter.

From January 1, the total fee for unsorted municipal waste management in Zone 1 managed by Clean R will be EUR 27.97 per cubic meter, in Zone 2 managed by Clean R it will be EUR 28.25 per cubic meter, in Zone 3 managed by Lautus Vide - EUR 25.1 per cubic meter, and in Zone 4 managed by Eco Baltia Vide - EUR 27.4 per cubic meter.

The increase in waste charges from October 1 is mainly due to an increase in certain waste management costs, such as wages.

From January 1, waste management charges will increase due to higher costs for municipal waste disposal, including natural resource tax on municipal waste disposal.

Elina Treija (National Alliance), chairwoman of the committee on housing and environment, called for support for the increase in tariffs. She acknowledged that the increase in the fees is linked to the need to force the population to separate more and more and to reduce the amount of waste to be landfilled.