The Danish model for sustainable waste solutions
Areas of special competence in the Danish public sector - selected examples
Capacity
building within regulation and administration of solid waste
Planning
of regionally integrated system for solid waste management
Implementation
of services for solid and hazardous waste management
Environmental
impact assessment of waste management
Establishment of a modern
landfill
Further
information about knowledge available for use abroad can be obtained on the following
websites:
No matter which areas you wish to develop in the field of waste management - a new
landfill, special systems for hazardous waste, health care waste or waste treatment plants
(incineration, anaearobic digestion etc.), the technical design and the concrete delivery
connected with new installations - Danish private consulting companies and manufacturers
can provide just the solution you need. In each of these areas, however, the public sector
has a very special and important role to play. The following sections provide examples
-demonstrating the interaction between the private and public sectors in Denmark
Capacity building within regulation and administration of solid waste
The establishment or modernisation of systems for solid waste management is not only about introducing new technology/plants/systems to treat waste generated. If generators, collectors and handlers of waste are to act in accordance with the goals and strategies laid down in a master plan or strategy for waste management, it is necessary to implement instruments and capacity to regulate, prepare and administer the plan or strategy that has been agreed. New legislation, regulation and means of control of different kinds - e.g. economic instruments - must be implemented. At the same time, administration of legislation etc. at the national, regional and local levels must be implemented or strengthened. In parallel to the construction of systems for waste management, the goal is thus to produce efficient instruments and sufficient, qualified capacity that can ensure that the planned system fulfils agreed goals and strategies. These two aspects have developed in parallel in Denmark for more than 20 years, and much practical experience has been accumulated, including experience in collaboration between Danish waste authorities and their consultants. The means to obtain an efficient administration with efficient tools may include the following stepwise considerations:
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Planning of regionally integrated system for solid waste management
Solid and hazardous waste management is normally very cost-heavy and characterised by large costsavings resulting from the establishment and operation of large plants for waste treatment and disposal instead of small. Costs for remote transport of waste do play a role, but normally do not contribute much to total costs in an integrated waste management system. Much economic advantage can be achieved by establishing regional collaboration for waste management covering e.g. 10-20 local authorities. Thus, it is the goal to identify a cost-efficient integrated system for the management of all wastes within a predetermined region. This is achieved by performing a master waste management plan including a number of activities where much experience has been gained by public authorities and their consultants for more than 20 years.
Subsequently, organisation for implementation and operation of the regional system must be established concurrently with building and strengthening of the local administrative and regulatory apparatus.
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Implementation of services for solid and hazardous waste management
For more than 100 years Danish local authorities have been directly involved in implementing services for citizens covering collection and landfill disposal of waste generated in households and commercial enterprises. It has been a tradition that the actual collection and disposal services have been carried out by the local authority itself - sometimes involving private enterprises in the operation. Since the late fifties treatment of the collected waste by composting or incineration (and later recycling) has been added to the operations carried out by the local authorities. In the same period private enterprises became involved to a larger extent in especially collection of waste from households and commercial/industrial enterprises.
This direct involvement in collection, recycling, treatment and landfill disposal has brought comprehensive hands-on experience and capacity to staff and organisations within the Danish local authorities and their consultants (which normally are consulting engineering firms).
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Environmental impact assessment of waste management
Since the start of the last century, waste collection and disposal has been regulated via local authority public health regulations. In the early 1970s a new comprehensive Environmental Protection Act was added to these regulations introducing integrated pollution control requirements whenever new facilities for treatment and disposal of solid and hazardous waste were planned and constructed.
For authorities and enterprises involved in waste management it became mandatory to carry out coherent environmental impact assessment of all operations connected to waste treatment and disposal facilities to be established. At the same time it became mandatory to carry out public hearings to ensure a dialogue with parties influenced by the new facility. For each new facility a special environmental approval was to be issued by the regional environmental authority (in Denmark the County Council). In this environmental approval a set of conditions were set up for the design and operation of the waste facility. Emission standards and other normative guidelines for planning, design and operation of waste facilities - prepared by the Danish Ministry of Environment have formed the basis for these conditions.
During almost 30 years all waste treatment and disposal facilities in Denmark have been environmentally assessed, involving local, regional and national authorities and their consultants, resulting in the most modern and state-of-the-art technologies and operational concepts to the benefit of all. Vast experience and capacity have been developed in this long period, which can be transferred to all newcomers in the sector.
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Establishment of a modern landfill
Establishment of a modern landfill anywhere in the world is not an easy task. And so is the situation in Denmark. Nimbyism is widespread, but in spite of that Danish local authorities responsible for waste disposal have succeeded several times in establishing a modern landfill.
Focus is often on technical design when a modern landfill is planned. Which liners are acceptable - double or single liner, clay or plastic? Location of drainage systems, treatment of leachate, protection of the surroundings etc.
All are relevant questions, but basically problems that can be solved by experienced consultants and suppliers experienced in the best available technologies and procedures.
Siting of the most suitable location and subsequent acceptance by the public, however, often is the most difficult task for landfill developers.
All the considerations given prior to the establishment of a landfill, and the following operation of the facility, are of extreme importance to a successful implementation of a modern landfill project. In Denmark, the public sector and their consultants have compiled experience and know-how from these considerations during many years of practical operation.
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Further information about knowledge available for use abroad can be obtained on the following websites:
www-Links
Association of Intermunicipal Waste Management Companies
www.renosam.dk
Danish Council of Consulting Architects and Engineers
www.par-fri.dk
Danish Environmental Protection Agency
www.mst.dk
Danish Waste Management Association
www.dakofa.dk
Green City Denmark
www.greencity.dk
International Solid Waste Association
www.iswa.dk
Ministry of Environment and Energy
www.mem.dk
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
www.um.dk
- Danida
www.um.dk/danida
The Association of County Councils in Denmark
www.arf.dk
The Confederation of Danish Industries
www.di.dk
The National Association of Local Authorities in Denmark
www.kl.dk
Waste Centre Denmark
www.wasteinfo.dk