Sustainable waste management solutions for tourist centres in Lapland 

The objective of this research project is to develop a sustainable waste management concept for tourist areas in the Northern Periphery.

The practical operations of the project will focus on selected tourist centres in Finnish Lapland. The primary interest areas are the two main tourist centres of Lapland: Levi, Ylläs, Olos- and Pallastunturi as well as the Saariselkä tourist centre. Amounts and composition of wastes in these areas will to be mapped and technological solutions for the energy efficient utilization of these waste streams are to be selected, tailor-built for local conditions. Small-scale, decentralized biorefinery solutions will be the target of the research. Technical and economical analyses will have to be performed for chosen biorefinery solutions, as well the feasibility of decentralized biorefinery networks be evaluated.

The following tasks will have to be performed during the 3 year project:
1) Collection of research data on how waste management is organised in tourist enterprises and what kind of recyclable waste fractions tourist centres produce
2) Analysis of collected waste data, evaluation of possibilities to refine waste materials and capability and readiness to use refined waste in production
3) Evaluation of environmental consciousness and attitudes towards waste management through interviews of tourists and local entrepreneurs
4) Material flow analysis, assessment of the challenges of seasonal variations
5) Evaluation and selection of biorefinery and waste-to-energy solutions for the two selected areas
6) Waste transport optimization through reverse logistics of waste flows to possible utilization areas, evaluation of collaboration potential and utilization of experiences of other Nordic countries
7) Socio-economic assessment to evaluate the potential impacts and benefits of the proposed solutions.

Project funding:

• Maj and Tor Nessling Foundation

Duration:
3/2010 - 1/2014

Contact person:

Eva Pongrácz, project leader
Arttu Juntunen, researcher

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