On 8 October, a seminar in Kyiv presented the results of a study on the current tariff system for municipal waste management in Ukraine and on tariff models used in other countries. The event was held as part of the Improving the Tariff System for Waste Management component of the Waste Management for Ukraine (WM4U) Programme.
The engineering and environmental consultancy Sweco, one of Europe’s leading design and consultancy groups, was selected to carry out the tariff reform project following an open tender. Sweco brings extensive experience in analytical studies and project solutions in environmental policy, energy, and waste management across various European countries, including Sweden and Poland.
Systemic analysis and search for practical solutions
The seminar aimed to present the results of the analysis of the tariff system for waste management services in Ukraine and to discuss possible ways to improve it.
Participants – representatives of national and regional authorities, WM4U experts, and utility service providers from pilot communities – were introduced to the study’s findings, which included:
- an analysis of the current tariff formation system in Ukraine, including examples from pilot communities;
- results of a comparative study of tariff systems in Sweden and Poland;
- an overview of various payment models for municipal waste management in other European countries.
Key findings
In the first session, Sweco experts who conducted the research presented an overview of Ukraine’s current tariff-setting system for waste management services, with special attention to the practices of pilot communities. The study explored issues of tariff transparency, actual service costs, compensation mechanisms, and incentives for effective waste management.
The presentation also included a comparative analysis of tariff models in Sweden and Poland. The experts highlighted how tariff structures in these countries encourage separate waste collection, increase recycling rates, and reduce landfill volumes.
“Ukraine is now at a crucial stage – between building a collection system and making it financially sustainable. Our goal is to show that tariffs can serve not only as a tool to cover costs but also as a lever for environmental behaviour,” said Magnus Montelius, Senior Consultant and Project Manager at Sweco.
Practical discussions: the community perspective
After the presentations, participants – representatives of communities from different regions of Ukraine – worked in groups to discuss three key questions:
- What changes are needed in the tariff system at the local and national levels?
- What barriers hinder these changes?
- How realistic is it to implement the proposed model in their local context?
During the discussions, participants emphasised the need for greater transparency in tariff calculations, simplified approval procedures for waste management tariffs, and strengthened financial capacity of service operators.
“Communities are the key actors in reforming the tariff system. It is at the local level where we can see whether the policy works – or not. The ministry’s role is to create the conditions under which transparent and fair tariffs become the norm, not the exception,” noted Diana Novikova, Head of the Department for Municipal Waste Management and Public Utilities at the Ministry for Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine.
Conclusions and next steps
In the final part of the event, Sweco experts summarised the results of the group discussions and outlined the next steps in the project’s implementation. These include developing proposals to update the regulatory framework and piloting alternative tariff models for waste management services in selected communities.
Concluding the seminar, the organisers emphasised that an effective tariff system is the foundation of a sustainable waste management model – one that combines economic logic with environmental responsibility, and financial stability with community trust.