Project partners

The Ministry of the Environment, Climate and Energy (MOPE) prepares and monitors key strategic documents, other operational programmes, thematic strategies and systemic tasks related to the integration of environmental protection and waste recycling into other sectoral policies. Based on the guidance provided in these documents, it prepares the regulations applicable to the implementation of environmental protection. The Waste Management Division of the Ministry's Environment Directorate is responsible for developing strategic solutions in the waste field and for preparing and monitoring the implementation of waste regulations. The Ministry's long-term strategic orientations and objectives in relation to environmental protection are aimed at preventing or reducing adverse impacts that threaten sustainable development. MOPE is the lead partner in the LIFE IP Restart project, the main objective of which is to contribute to the effective implementation of the measures of the National Operational Programme for Waste Prevention and Management. One of the activities of the lead partner is also the communication of the project.

The Slovenian National Building and Civil Engineering Institute (ZAG) is the leading research and testing institute of its kind in Slovenia. It is a state-owned, independent, impartial and non-profit organisation. Its main activities are: a) fundamental and applied research in the field of construction materials and structures, b) development of new testing and measurement methods, c) certification and validation of the conformity of products, materials and works, d) training of research and technical staff in specific technical fields, e) participation in the preparation of technical regulations and standards. One of the major programmes of ZAG's activities is in the field of environmental research, in particular in the fields of waste recycling, the circular economy, and soil and water remediation. Their role in the project is to support the acquisition of knowledge and experience in the field of recycling waste into construction products, digitalization and analysis of mass flows, evaluation of project impacts, and support in the development of decision-making tools and the transfer of good practices. They are the leaders of pilot actions C9, C10 and C11 and coordinators of actions A2, C13 and D3.

Hydropower company Dravske elektrarne Maribor d.o.o. (DEM) with eight large hydropower plants on the Drava River, five small hydropower plants and four solar power plants produce almost a quarter of all Slovenian electricity. In the last decade DEM company is facing sedimentation problems. A larger amount of sediment is annually accumulated in the hydro reservoirs, which needs to be appropriately handled. Because of the lack of space in the Drava valley for sludge deposition and newly imposed regulations, there is an urgent need for new solutions in sediment management. The objective of the DEM company is to establish a system of integral sediment management: to utilize the Drava river sediment potential as a development opportunity, take into account the water capacity in spatial planning and reduce risks to life, health and property of residents. They will implement pilot action C7 - recycling of excavated sediment.

SOL.LEX.SUS is a start-up company whose activities include expert advice, promotion and professional support in the field of sustainable economic development and environmental protection. SOL.LEX.SUS forms a team of competent experts dealing with issues of environmental protection, waste management, circular economy and digitalization of related processes. The work of SOL.LEX.SUS focuses on the legal assessment of legislation at the national and local levels, identification of possible legal obstacles for environmentally adequate goals and assistance in successful implementation of legal improvements. They are the coordinators of actions A3, A4, C2, C3, C4, C14 and D1, which deal with the legislative aspects of circularity in the waste sector.

University of Ljubljana is the oldest and largest higher education and scientific research institution in Slovenia. The common denominator of all academic and scientific disciplines at the Biotechnical Faculty is natural resources (soil, physical space, flora, fauna, and water). At Agronomy department of Biotechnical Faculty Center for Agricultural Land Management and agrohydrology deals with environmental concerns of dynamics of nutrient cycling, solute leaching, groundwater pollution prevention and vulnerability assessment. Center for Soil and Environmental Sciences is a leading national institution in the field of soil and environmental science and has dedicated laboratories for soil physical, chemical, and biological properties. Combined, their research covers sustainable land use practices for soil degradation prevention and environment protection, recultivation of degraded land and remediation of contaminated soil. They are participating in the project pilot action C6 - production of topsoil for the revitalization of degraded areas into functional land.

RESULT is an IT company with over 30 years of experience in building IT systems. They are helping global multinational companies as well as government sector to build information systems that support faster growth and accurate decision making. This is achieved by combining core software development, business intelligence, process intelligence, and artificial intelligence to accelerate efficiency in all areas. Optimisation of mass flow processes by use of AI can be demonstrated by RESULT’s implementation of Research and Innovation project also co-funded by EU and national funds where they have used AI to reduce scrap in production process of one of subsidiaries of a multinational corporation. RESULT has so far participated in several Research and Innovation projects, in the LIFE Restart project working on the digitalization of waste management (action C12). In the LIFE Restart project, they are working on digitising waste management (Action C12).

Georudeko, Geology Mining, and Ecology,d.o.o. is SME whose main applied scientific activities (waste management and recycling) are in the field of primary and secondary raw materials for the construction industry and secondly with Geotechnical Engineering, focused on the application of the sedimentological and structural recognition/monitoring for safe and optimized mining works considering acceptable eco-nomic balance. The company's CEO, Dr Željko Pogačnik, is an active member of the professional NGO Association of Technical Managers - Surface Mining, which brings together more than 90% of concessionaires and technical managers and professional bodies in the mining sector. He is an independent researcher in the field of non-metallic industrial mineral deposits and primary and secondary raw material in OPC klinker production. As coordinator of action C6, he focuses on the revitalisation of mining sites and leads A9, C15 and C16.

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia has been offering its members environmental services for over forty years, offering consultancy on environmental legislation with an emphasis on practical implementation. It is a focal point for exchange of information and experience in the field of waste and industrial pollution. The Chamber acts as a knowledge exchange hub, bringing together professionals working on environmental issues in industry, inviting the exchange of technical know-how, disseminating new ideas and environmental trends that are expected to influence the business community in the future. The Chamber also encourages active participation of its staff and chamber members as speakers in workshops, seminars, roundtables pertaining to industrial pollution, waste treatment, industrial waste streams, waste packaging, WEEE, batteries etc. In action A5 they will assess the educational and societal basis for the circular economy and develop a training programme for the project's target groups in the economic field.

The company DELTAPLAN is primarily involved in environmental projects with emphasis on the circular and collaborative economy. Various members of the company’s staff are widely recognized as environmental experts, in recent years particularly in the area of circular economy and cross sector resource recovery, which is reflected through numerous successful projects, which the company helped create and implement with different roles (partners, subcontractors, experts). In the project they will support the pilot promoters in the preparation of documentation and permits for the implementation of the demonstration actions (action A8), and will be responsible for mobilising additional financial resources (action C5) and monitoring the socio-economic impacts of the project (action D4).

NERINVEST private mining and ecological company with experience in the production of high-quality manufactured aggregate from electric-arc furnace (EAF) slags. Company manages the Andraž quarry, where it also processes metallurgical, construction and industrial waste. It is an is an innovative company with research and development experience in the field of extraction of mineral raw materials from secondary sources of raw materials - metallurgical and industrial waste, especially in the production of aggregate from steel slag. Due to the specifics of the industry, the company constantly invests in research and development, which aims to find solutions for the reprocessing of alternative materials, development of innovative technological devices, planning of reprocessing processes, development of new products. They are demonstrators of the C10 pilot action - production of critical raw materials and recycling of sewage sludge.

RGP d. o. o. is a construction company which with modern solutions, their own machinery, and a wide construction network, ensures quality implementation of all mining and construction programs, including the production of stone aggregates and concrete products, and thus cover all levels of demanding and less demanding construction interventions. They own some specific equipment for the field of construction works in the mining and water area and have highly trained staff. Priority for their work is to reduce environmental aspects such as noise, dust, wastewater, seismicity, and more rational use of energy and water. In recent years, RGP has successfully completed a number of projects in the fields of artificial islands in rivers, river bank regulation, road and bridge construction, etc. In the project they are working with Dravske elektrarne Maribor (DEM) on the C7 pilot action - recycling dredged sediment.

The Institute for Hydraulic Research has laboratories and open area capacities, with a pressure station for tests of hydraulic systems and two testing flumes. The Institute has a great deal of experience with physical and numerical hydraulic modelling and with various field measurements and on-site monitoring. The institute has also performed a wide range of field investigations. Physical Model Studies are still invaluable in designing and rehabilitating hydraulic structures, improving efficiency and safety and reducing construction costs. The Institute disposes adequate facilities and equipment for the implementation of a whole range of physical models, including river diversion tunnels, weirs, spillways, stilling basins, power intakes and bottom outlets, gates, valves, hydraulic dissipating elements, transport of matter and heat in open channel flow, local scour of river sediments, river engineering and training. As part of the pilot action C7 (Recycling of dredged sediment for increased flood safety), a study was carried out for Dravske elektrarne Maribor on the placement of sediment retention basins in Lake Ptuj.

Geological Survey of Slovenia (GeoZS) is a public research institute. The Survey carries out fundamental, applied, developmental and object research within all geological branches and related fields of work. The research programs cover all the fields of geology that are of national importance (geological composition of the national territory, production of geological maps, assessment of geological hazards, natural and anthropogenic, to living environments, assessment of threats to geological environment due to pollution and other anthropogenic factors, assessment of groundwater, mineral resources and geothermal energy resources, assessment of natural geological heritage, and development of geological knowledge and research methods). The geological expert services carry out the collection, verification, storage and distribution of geological data, the maintenance of geological data bases and expert as well as material archive of all geological research activities carried out within the national territory, the geological supervision, and the expert geological basis needed by the governmental administration and legislation. In the LIFE Restart project, they will participate in Actions C6.2 (Reclamation of Mining Areas) and C15 (Circular Economy Education and Capacity in private Sector).

CEROP d. o. o. is a public company established for the purpose of implementing mandatory municipal public economic services for environmental protection in the field of waste management in the area of 27 founding municipalities, 6 municipalities in the area of the Lenart Administrative Unit and 3 municipalities in the area of the Ormož Administrative Unit. The company strives to implement public economic services in a way that takes into account environmental conservation, sustainable development and social responsibility. In the project, they will carry out the C11 demonstration action (Critical raw material production and recycling of sewage sludge) and contribute their expertise to several other actions.