UPM Cargas vertedero basuraLighter landfill loads

The Finnish forest industry is rapidly decreasing its landfill waste volumes, and this trend will continue through more efficient use of side streams, predicts Maija Heikkinen, Senior Environmental Adviser at the Finnish Forest Industries Federation.

“At the beginning of this year, Finland banned the dumping of organic waste at landfills. We hope that new legislation will also facilitate the fabrication of new products from side streams. This would make sound business sense as well. Forest industry companies are often the ones to pay for others exploiting their side streams as raw material.”
Maija Heikkinen

The forest industry’s total landfill waste volume in 2013 amounted to 114,000 tonnes. The latest statistics for 2014 confirm that this total decreased to 92,000 tonnes. This welcome trend is set to continue in coming years. According to Heikkinen, the forest industry’s side streams could be used more effectively in fields such as landscaping, but legislation has posed obstacles.

“When the Finnish Land Use and Building Act is amended, we will try to ensure that we can increase the use of various recovered materials. Also, threshold limit values should be revised so that ash can be used more widely for maintaining and building forest roads.”
Boosting Europe’s circular economy

In December 2015, the EU Commission published a new action plan for the circular economy. The aim is to close the loop of product lifecycles through more efficient recycling and reuse, bringing benefits to both the environment and the economy.

“From the perspective of the forest industries, the new action plan places slightly more emphasis on the bioeconomy and the use of renewable raw materials, which is important for our industry. However, it still seems to focus on the recycling of non-renewable natural resources,” says Heikkinen.

The new action plan also includes measures to monitor the circular economy and measure the use of resources. “We hope these indicators will take into account the difference between renewable and non-renewable natural resources. This is genuinely a big challenge.”

The Commission’s action plan includes some 50 proposals to boost Europe’s circular economy in coming years. This includes actions in the fields of production, product design, waste, public procurement and consumer information.

La industria forestal finlandesa disminuye rápidamente sus volúmenes de basura de vertedero de basura, y esta tendencia seguirá por el uso más eficiente de corrientes de lado, predice Maija Heikkinen, Consejero Ambiental Mayor en la Federación de Industrias Forestal finlandesa.
“A principios de este año, Finlandia prohibió el vertido de la basura orgánica en vertederos de basura. Esperamos que la nueva legislación también facilite la fabricación de nuevos productos de corrientes de lado. Este haría el sentido comercial sano también. Las compañías de industria forestales son a menudo estos para pagar para otros que explotan sus corrientes de lado como la materia prima.”
El volumen de basura de vertedero de basura total de la industria forestal en 2013 ascendió a 114,000 toneladas. Las últimas estadísticas para 2014 confirman que este total se disminuyó a 92,000 toneladas. Se pone que esta tendencia bienvenida siga en años próximos. Según Heikkinen, las corrientes de lado de la industria forestal podrían ser usadas más con eficacia en campos como la jardinería ornamental, pero la legislación ha planteado obstáculos.
“Cuando el Uso de la Tierra Finlandés y Construyendo el Acto es enmendado, trataremos de asegurar que podemos aumentar el uso de varios materiales recuperados. También, los valores de límite de umbral deberían ser revisados de modo que cubo de la basura ser usado más extensamente para mantener y construir caminos forestales.”

 

BIOFORE -  FINLANDIA - 02 agosto 2016