Skopje to install cameras to catch illegal dumpers and launch an app for citizens to report waste
City plans video surveillance on problem spots and a citizen app; Drisla landfill to be reorganised.
The City of Skopje announced a package of measures to curb illegal dumping and damage to urban equipment, including a plan to install video surveillance at problem sites and a new citizen reporting app.
Camera network and a reporting platform
Municipal officials said the plan envisages placing more than 200 cameras at critical locations across Skopje, but use of the footage will require clearance from the national data protection authority. The municipality framed the cameras as a tool to identify offenders and to deter the formation of informal dumps in parks and other vulnerable spots.
“We will install more than 200 cameras at critical locations across the city. This has not been done so far. This will cover critical points such as sites where dumps form, in parks that are constantly targeted,” said Orce Gjorgjievski, mayor of the City of Skopje.
At the same time the city presented the user-facing platform Eco Skopje, developed by a group of 30 young activists. The platform allows residents to report overflowing containers, illegal dumps and unpleasant odours anonymously and route those reports directly to the competent services.
“On the app itself you will be able to report immediately and be sure that the report will reach the right place. There will be no need to forward or drag out that whole procedure. Services will immediately have visibility and will be able to act,” said Andrej Bozhinovski, speaking about the Eco Skopje platform.
Officials noted that surveillance cameras are already used elsewhere to detect illegal dumping — examples cited include India and Ireland — while in neighbouring Serbia and Montenegro municipal police conduct field inspections and enforce communal regulations.
The mayor also announced plans to reorganise the Drisla landfill, with the stated goal of transforming it into a modern waste-management and recycling centre.
Reporting: Tamara Markovska
Photo: press material from the event
