Page 59 - CIJ May 2025- Digital Edition

WASTE MANAGEMENT

The main goal of this treatment
Municipal Network producers are responsible for is to circulate nutrients within the
financing the collection and
Waste collection and treatment treatment of waste. The cost to ecosystem. Anaerobic digestion is
are managed by 290 municipalities, producers is reflected in the price the most common method used to
each of which ensures that waste is of the product. Companies handle treat food waste, producing biogas
transported, recycled or disposed their own waste, design products (methane and carbon dioxide), a
of appropriately. Municipal waste to be easily recyclable and pay in renewable energy source. After
includes residual waste, organic advance. upgrading, carbon dioxide is
waste, food waste, bulky waste and EPR is mandatory for specific removed and used as vehicle fuel
hazardous waste. waste streams such as cars, tires, or in industrial processes, including
Municipalities are free to medicines, batteries, packaging heating and electricity generation.
organize their waste management and newspapers. In 2023, the
using internal resources or EPR scheme expanded to cover Avfall Sverige Takes
in collaboration with other tobacco and filters, wet wipes, the Lead
municipalities, municipal balloons and fishing equipment. To The United Nations Development
associations, enterprises, political discourage the dumping of residual Programme (UNDP) works with
boards, or even private contractors. or biodegradable waste in landfills, 170 partner countries and territories
Waste covered by the Extended Sweden has implemented a landfill and in 2022, the Swedish Waste
Producers Responsibility (EPR) is tax on landfill operators (SEK Management group collaborated on
excluded from this category. 725 per tonne in 2024). This tax, a project involving municipalities
The process of handling different introduced in 2020 and adjusted from four continents. This initiative
types of waste varies. Residual annually, has resulted in only 1% of provided a forum for cooperation
waste is incinerated, food waste Sweden’s waste reaching landfills and the sharing of strategies on smart
is sent for anaerobic digestion in 2022, compared to a global waste management while moving
and garden waste is composted. average of 60% . toward sustainability goals globally.
Bulky waste is separated and Another tax, the incineration tax Together with domestic and
either recycled, incinerated, or (which was started in 2020), has international partners, Avfall
sent to landfills. Municipalities now been scrapped. Sweden’s WTE Sverige offers technical advice
collect household waste and food plants have such high capacity that, to municipalities worldwide on
waste through bins and containers compared to the domestic waste infrastructure development, finance,
in doorstep collection systems. available for incineration, they governance, communication and
Garden waste or hazardous waste is import waste from other countries training.
collected through recycling centers willing to pay for the service.
or drive-and-drop waste sites. The incineration process is not as Future Challenges

Each municipality is responsible environmentally harmful as might Sweden is facing new challenges,
for drafting a municipal waste plan, be expected. such as meeting the new recycling
which outlines targets, measures and Ashes, which contain metals, targets—55% by 2025 and 60%
steps for managing and preventing are extracted for use in road by 2030 — and a 70% target for
waste. Municipalities finance construction and the smoke packaging waste by 2030. From
activities by levying municipal fees, produced during incineration 2023, it became mandatory to
which are decided by the council. is filtered to meet air quality collect food waste and starting
These fees cover costs related to standards. The remaining ash in 2025, textiles will also need
containers, collection, centers, is treated before being sent to to be collected. Amendments to
information, recycling, planning landfills. Swedish waste legislation will
and administration and can include require municipalities to handle the
incentives for recycling. The fee is Food Waste to Biogas collection of waste covered by EPR
paid by the property owner — for Sweden’s deposit system schemes, while producers will be
example, a single-family household for recycling PET bottles and responsible for recycling.
paid an average of SEK 2,542 in aluminum cans is effectively
By 2027, 100% of residential
2022, while apartment households organized by supermarkets and buildings or areas should have
paid an average of SEK 1,528. beer producers. The biological facilities for waste collection.

EPR and Landfill Tax treatment of food waste through Sweden launched compulsory food
waste collection last year, with
anaerobic digestion and composting
Under the Extended Producers plants reached 459,100 tonnes three the goal of collecting 70% of food
Responsibility (EPR) scheme, years ago. waste by 2029.
59
www.cleanindiajournal.com•Clean India Journal•MAY 2025