Last week, a study visit took place in Sweden involving representatives of the Lozova Cluster’s local authorities, the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration, beneficiary ministries, the WM4U team and experts in the development of regional and local waste management plans. The visit focused on studying Swedish experience in the field of waste management, the development of the cluster concept and inter-municipal cooperation, as well as devising practical solutions for Ukrainian communities.
The training began in Västerås with an introduction to the Swedish waste management system and the role of municipalities in its planning and organisation. Participants visited Vafabmiljö’s facilities (what’s the Ukrainian term for this? But let’s just call it that) and gained practical insight into approaches to:
– landfill operation,
– environmental monitoring of waste acceptance at the landfill,
– leachate and landfill gas management,
– data collection and ensuring appropriate environmental indicators,
– the operation of a separate collection point for household waste at the landfill
They also discussed operational solutions that could yield rapid results without significant investment.
An important part of the visit was the work on the cluster concept. Swedish experts presented approaches to inter-municipal cooperation, in particular models for management, financing and the distribution of responsibilities among local authorities.
The Ukrainian communities, for their part, analysed the current state of infrastructure and waste flows in their local areas, identified priorities and set strategic objectives – in other words, they worked on roadmaps. They discussed the results of this work with Swedish experts.
‘The experience our Swedish colleagues have gained isn’t just on paper. They have demonstrated their achievements – everything they have brought to fruition through fruitful cooperation with both the public and staff. This includes a significant breakthrough in the education of young people, as well as an attitude towards the natural environment. This is the path Ukraine must follow for its future. There is work to be done. We are setting ourselves certain targets as homework – going forward, every month we will assess what has been achieved within the cluster and what will work in the future,” said Denys Petrenko, Deputy Mayor of Lozova.
A separate day of the training was devoted to the separate collection of household waste and the management of bio-waste. The participants learnt about the Swedish approach to communicating with residents and processing bio-waste, and visited a biogas plant.
The study visit provided an opportunity to translate the knowledge gained into concrete actions for Ukrainian communities. Following the visit, the participants identified priority areas for further cooperation, those responsible for implementing the next steps, and key issues for developing cluster concepts.
The event was held within the Swedish-Ukrainian WM4U Programme, which aims to support the development of modern, systemic, and environmentally responsible waste management solutions at local, regional and national levels.The programme is funded by the Government of Sweden through Sida and led by Avfall Sverige and SALAR International.