New agreement between the Hera Group and the Vatican City State for integrated waste management

The Governorate of the Vatican City State and the Hera Group have launched a new phase of their collaboration by signing an agreement that entrusts Herambiente S.p.A. – a Hera Group company specializing in waste treatment and recovery – with the overall management of environmental services within Vatican territory and in the areas specified in Articles 15 and 16 of the Lateran Treaty.

The agreement was signed on Friday, December 12, at the Governorate of Vatican City State. Attending the meeting were Sr. Raffaella Petrini and Archbishop Emilio Nappa, President and Secretary General respectively, as well as Eng. Orazio Iacono, Chief Executive Officer of the Hera Group, and Dr. Andrea Ramonda, Chief Executive Officer of Herambiente S.p.A.

The understandings sealed by the Parties are consistent with the application of the principles of the circular economy, in accordance to Pope Francis’ Encyclical Laudato si’. By strengthening this collaboration, the Governorate reaffirms its institutional mission to uphold its commitment to environmental protection and the promotion of sustainable and responsible practices.

The activities to be carried out by Herambiente S.p.A. relate to urban hygiene: the collection, transport, recovery, and disposal of municipal waste, as well as the treatment of special waste generated both within the Vatican City State and in buildings where the institutions of the Holy See operate. In addition to operational services, Hera will provide specialist expertise through consultancy activities and training programs aimed at the Governorate staff and the economic operators present within Vatican territory.

Among the initiatives already underway is the project for collecting and recycling plastic bottles during Jubilee events in St. Peter’s Square. A concrete example was the large-scale collection operation organized for the September 7 celebration of the canonization of Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati, which involved more than 80,000 participants.

This new agreement therefore forms part of the virtuous path already undertaken by the Parties, aimed at pursuing a responsible waste management model that ensures traceability, efficiency, and maximization of recovery, while also promoting behaviors that foster greater attention to the circular economy and, more broadly, environmental protection.