RECO Baltic 21 Tech - Towards Sustainable Waste Management in the Baltic Sea Region

Background

Waste management is a matter of central concern to Baltic Sea countries, where significant disparities are seen: whereas in Germany or Sweden around 3 % of the household waste goes to disposal, this fi gure in Poland is over 90 %. Insufficient transnational actions in the field of waste management clearly hamper the development of this area in the Baltic Sea Region (BSR).

The “Reco Baltic 21 Tech” (RB21T) is partly funded by the Baltic Sea Region Programme 2007-2013 and is running from October 2010 to December 2013. It aims at addressing this problem by fostering sustainable waste management (WM) in the Baltic Sea Region. The project aims at strengthening the capacity of Baltic Sea countries to climb the waste hierarchy and meet the various EU directives. RB21T is also expected to create innovative business opportunities in the Clean-Tech industry. Operationally, RB21T will establish a transnational and cross-sectorial platform for expertise exchange in waste management in the Baltic Sea Region, which will increase its competitiveness. RB21T will directly target and assist 30 decision makers on the local/regional and national level about to realize a waste management investment, drawing on the latest research and Best Available Technologies (BAT).

Objectives of the project

The overall objective of the project is to improve the local and regional capacity to apply the process of implementing waste management that support the implementation of the EU Waste Management Directive, helping countries in the Baltic Sea Region to address their problems with waste management and disposal. The subobjectives of the project are:

Institutionalising the project results:

To put into practice systematic approaches to waste management developed in the RB21T project (the network, Waste Management Planning System (WAMPS), guidelines and handbooks).
To provide a platform across the Baltic Sea Region that enables cooperation in waste management through close collaboration of expert organisations, suppliers of waste technology and stakeholders.
To elaborate a strategy (BSR level) and investment model that defi nes necessary actions ensuring organisational learning within and between authorities to continue to develop WM and lower the transaction costs.

Exchange of good practice and Best Available Technologies

To jointly select and build pilot projects based on good practices.
To develop at least two concrete investment projects per country, disseminate them at the Baltic Sea Region level and attract external funds for these pilots of €20 million.
To give project partners opportunities to put into perspective their waste management needs, via the identification and exchange of good practice, to consider waste as an asset for innovations, business opportunities and employment.
To improve the capacity to overcome difficulties faced when selecting suitable waste management methods and techniques

News

Baltic Sea Waste Management Conference: "Cornerstones for sustainable waste management in the Baltic Sea region"

17 October 2013, Minsk, Belarus

The conference "Cornerstones for sustainable waste management in the Baltic Sea region" is the final conference of the Interreg IVB project RECO Baltic 21 Tech "RB21T".

>> Registration <<<

RB21T aims to improve waste management in the BSR by identification and exchange of good practices, to consider waste as an asset for innovations, business opportunities and employment. During the conference the main outputs of the project will be presented. We are glad to present highly qualified and interesting speakers representing academic, public and private stakeholders. We look forward to informative speeches, thoughtful discussions and a fruitful exchange between participants.

BUP Summer Course on Sustainability and Waste Management in the Baltic “Making Waste Work”

17 - 21 September 2013, Hamburg, Germany

The Summer Course is already fully booked and we cannot take any new registrations. Thanks for your interest!

Up to three billion tons of waste is produced in the European Union every year (EC, 2010).

The amount of waste created globally is expected to increase up to 27 billion ton p.a. in 2050 (Tanaka, 2007) due to changing consumption patterns, i.e. higher living standards and lifestyle changes leading to more consumption. Waste management is, therefore, a topic of major concern in Europe and elsewhere. It is understood as the procedure of monitoring and handling waste from collection, transport, treatment (processing), recovery and recycling to final disposal of the remaining residual waste. However, good waste management begins with preventing waste generation and minimising quantities of waste. A typical waste management hierarchy is prevention, minimisation, reuse and recycling, recovery and disposal.

Multilevel Governance and Strategic Approaches towards Sustainable (Product) Innovation

20 - 22 June 2013, Opole, Poland

Sustainability issues have become so common in many fields of socio-, political- and economic life, that it is often forgotten that it requires new approaches, and a change in rules guiding human activity , ways of thinking and governance structures. There exists the need to understand the interactions in institutional change between socio-economic systems, technology , product innovation and a transition path towards more sustainable production structures.

European Conference on Sustainable Development

15 - 18 May 2013, Minsk, Belarus

Sustainable Development (SD) is a modality of development that meets the needs of the present generations, without compromising the ability of future ones to meet their own needs. This definition, presented in 1987 at the publication "Our Common Future" (Brundtland Report) of the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), is still widely applicable today.

At the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in June 1992, the document "Agenda 21" was adopted by representatives of 179 countries. In this document, the concept of sustainable development acquired a greater internatonal meaning and relevance. More recently, a the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) held in held Rio de Janeiro in June 2012, the document "The Future We Want" was adopted. This document defines new horizons for sustainable development. Rio+20 Secretary-General, Mr. Sha Zukang, pointed out that "The Rio+20 Conference was a landmark event of far-reaching historic significance. Addressing a large number of inter-linked challenges through inclusive consultations and negotiations, Rio+20 achieved a balanced and action-oriented outcome, reflecting the positions and commitments of all nations".

RECO Baltic 21 Tech Newsletter 04 now online

The 4th RECO Baltic 21 Tech Newsletter is now available online:

Sustainable Energy for All

Sustainable energy – energy that is accessible, cleaner and more efficient – powers opportunity. It grows economies. It lights up homes, schools and hospitals. It empowers women and local communities. And it paves a path out of poverty to greater prosperity for all. But nearly one in five people around the world do not have access to modern energy services. Twice that number, three billion people, rely on wood, coal, charcoal or animal waste for cooking and heating. In today's economy, this is inequitable – a major barrier to eradicating poverty. The energy future we need is one in which everyone has access to modern energy services, where energy resources are used more efficiently, and where countries increasingly invest in renewable sources.

Waste Management Planning system (WAMPS)

WAMPS- a software tool for waste management planning

As part of the Reco Baltic 21 Tech project, the IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute has developed a software application called WAMPS (Waste Management Planning System). The application enables the users via a web interface to carry out calculations in order to compare the environmental performance of different types of waste management systems. This is based on life cycle assessment (LCA).