Background Municipal waste management practices are failing to achieve high recycling rates in several southern European countries, making it difficult to achieve EU targets. The Waste Framework Directive requires Member States to increase the re-use and recycling of waste materials, such as paper, metal, plastic and glass from households, to a minimum of 50% overall by weight by 2020. Recycling rates of these waste streams in Greece, Cyprus and Portugal are currently around 20%, well below the target and the current European average (35%). One cause of this is inefficiency in the selective collection of materials: less than 15% of all lightweight packaging is presently recovered and valorised, while the remainder is sent unsorted to Mechanical and Biological Treatment (MBT) and to landfill. The overall low rates of segregation at source and recycling mean higher treatment costs at MBT facilities and an inefficient use of resources. Since citizens and commerce actively engaged in source-segregation and recycling pay the same fee as those who do not sort or recycle, they do not feel rewarded and this can weaken their commitment. Objectives The LIFE PAYT project will implement an integrated, cost-efficient and highly replicable PAYT (pay-as-you-throw) system in five southern EU municipalities: Lisbon, Condeixa and Aveiro (Portugal), Vrilissia (Greece) and Larnaka (Cyprus). LIFE PAYT has four main objectives: reduce residual waste from household and commerce; increase recycling rates for packaging materials; demonstrate changes in local decision-making that contribute to the implementation of EU environmental strategies and targets; and promote the replication of the concept in other southern European municipalities. To achieve these aims, the project will use strategies to link waste producers with the amount of waste they discard. For instance, the project will modernise and optimise residual waste collection by introducing software and hardware tools (RFID, ID cards, monitoring collection), and design fair and equitable waste tariffs. LIFE PAYT will use a participatory approach to maximise municipal stakeholders’ involvement and raise awareness – e.g. by creating specific training courses for decision makers. The project’s development support tools will boost transferability, with the involvement of stakeholders from Bulgaria, Croatia, Malta, Romania and Spain. The project will contribute to achieving the household waste management objectives of the Waste Framework Directive and the reduction of biodegradable waste going to landfills (with subsequent greenhouse gas emission reductions), as outlined by the Landfill of Waste Directive. Expected results: Establishment of a PAYT system that works as a cost-effective model (under €50 per tonne for residual waste collection) to ensure economic and environmental sustainability of municipalities in Greece, Portugal and Cyprus; Reduction of household’s residual waste in at least 30% and up to 40% at the target sites; Increased recycling rates for packaging waste (glass, paper, plastic and metal) to 15-30% at the demonstration sites (currently 6.3-21%); Increased home composting: 10% of all detached houses take up home composting, with 200 kg per year of household bio-waste diverted from landfill; Modernised and optimised residual waste collection with an expected reduction in CO2-eq emissions through direct reduction in fossil fuel consumption (10-15% of present carbon footprint in target municipalities); Increased awareness through a citizens’ portal, providing economic and environmental information to both decision-makers and the general public; Increased commitment of the research and technical communities: a web portal will provide scientists and municipalities with insights about current status at the demonstration sites, and tools will be freely available (as open source software) to be used by other municipalities; Evaluation of the project’s environmental, social and economic impact over its lifetime: around 13 500 tonnes of waste reduction at the demonstration sites when project ends and over 360 000 tonnes/year at the replicability sites five years after; and Development of a framework of guidelines and specifications for PAYT implementation targeting local authorities, and the establishment of a dedicated PAYT network.