Urban NEXUS Case Story: Turning Up the Heat with the Eco-oil Program
A Community Development Project Linking Cooking Oil Waste to Energy and Community EducationImproper disposal of cooking oil contaminates water supplies and substantially increases sewage treatment costs. In response to high levels of improper oil dumping, multiple municipal departments in the city of Volta Redonda, Brazil, collaborated to create the Eco-oil (Eco Óleo) Association of Collectors of Effluents and Solid Waste, which collects used cooking oil from businesses and households. A private-sector partner purchases the oil for use at a local biodiesel plant.
The Urban NEXUS project 2013-2014 was funded by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). ICLEI, as implementing partner of the Urban NEXUS project, is responsible for the content of this case story.