2. holder shall recover the waste in other ways, including recovery as energy. If
Waste management at Technopolis
recovery is not possible, disposal of the waste shall be carried out.
In Finland, waste management is regulated by the Waste Act (646/2011) and the
This environmental guideline collates information on how to sort different types of
Government Decree on Waste (179/2012). The purpose of the Act is to support
waste. Waste sorting stations are available for free use by all companies operating in
sustainable development by promoting the reasonable use of natural resources and
Technopolis properties. Keep this guideline and tell others about it.
preventing and avoiding risk, health and environment hazards caused by waste. In
addition, waste management in office, retail, and industrial premises is regulated by
local waste management regulations.
Key issues in waste management
Sorting is carried out to collect the same type of waste in the same place to make its
transport and further processing easier and more efficient. Recycling of waste
means operations by which waste is reprocessed into a product, material or
substance, either for the original or some other purpose; recycling of waste does not
include recovery of waste as energy or the reprocessing of waste into fuel or material
to be used for backfilling. Recovery of waste means any operation whose principal
result is waste serving a useful purpose in a production facility or elsewhere in the
economy, so that it replaces other materials or objects which would otherwise have
been used to fulfill a particular function, including waste being prepared to fulfill that
function. Disposal of waste means depositing the waste at a landfill, incineration
without energy recovery, or some other comparable activity that does not constitute
recovery, even where the secondary consequence of the operation is recovery of a
Chapter 2 − General obligations and principles Section 8 General obligation to
substance, or of energy contained in the waste, including preparation of waste for
comply with order of priority
disposal.
All activities shall, insofar as possible, comply with the following order of priority: First
priority shall be given to reducing the quantity and harmfulness of waste generated.
If, however, waste is generated, the waste holder shall first and foremost prepare the
waste for re-use, or secondarily, recycle it. If recycling is not possible, the waste
Environmentally friendly activity means choosing operating procedures that result
in avoiding the generation of unnecessary waste in advance. Saving the environment
almost always translates into cost savings as well.
3. Wastepaper
Paper is collected at source and sorted into waste recycling containers. Staples and
Cardboard
Cardboard is collected in cardboard roll containers at the collection points. Some
paperclips need not be removed. Paper is taken from offices to the building waste
collection points also have cardboard compressors which Technopolis property
station and put into paper collection bins, from which it is transported to an approved
maintenance uses to compress cardboard on-site.
waste consignee. In further processing, wastepaper is de-inked. After that, the paper
Cardboard may not be placed amongst wastepaper, as it is processed in a different
is used for manufacturing newspaper or tissue paper.
way from paper for reuse. Cardboard is recovered without de-inking as brown fiber in
Suitable for wastepaper collection:
the manufacturing of paper roll cores, bookbinding boards and paper sacks.
+
newspapers and magazines
+
advertisement, brochures and similar printed products
+
recycled paper
+
brown cardboard and paperboard
+
white and colored copy paper and continuous forms
+
kraft paper and brown envelopes
+
white and recycled paper envelopes
(adhesive tape, labels or rivets need not be removed)
+
white notebook paper (without cardboard cover)
Not suitable for paper collection:
Suitable for cardboard collection:
Not suitable for cardboard collection:
-
copy-paper wraps
-
wet or dirty cardboard and kraft paper
-
cardboard and paperboard
-
foil or cellulose film
-
trash, wet or dirty paper
-
expanded polystyrene
-
waxed or foil-covered packaging (such as milk and juice cartons)
-
plastic
-
plastic, adhesive tape, wax paper and cellulose film
-
gift wrappings, wallpaper, building boards and paper
4. Bio waste
The biggest source of bio waste is food preparation in restaurants and food leftovers.
Recyclable glass
Most Technopolis properties generate so little glass waste that it can be disposed of
Waste is collected in separately labeled containers. Liquid waste may not be
with general waste. Some buildings have separate containers for glass waste.
disposed of with bio waste because the containers can freeze in the winter. From
Recyclable glass is converted into recycled glass, glass packaging and glass wool.
Technopolis, bio waste is transported to further processing where it is composted to
Glass packaging with a deposit should be returned to their collection points.
produce soil, distilled into fuel or digested to produce energy.
Suitable for bio waste:
Suitable for glass collection:
+
leftovers, fruit, vegetable peel and eggshells
+
solution and infusion vials
+
coffee grounds and tea leaves
+
reagent vials and ampoules
+
paper coffee filters
+
ordinary glass bottles and cans
+
paper towels and paper napkins
+
baby food pots, drinking glasses, juice and drink bottles.
(empty the containers, rinse them and remove the caps)
Not suitable for bio waste:
Not suitable for glass collection:
-
plastic, metal, and glass
-
ashes, cleaning dust and cigarette butts
-
porcelain, ceramics, and crystal
-
diapers, milk or juice cartons, yoghurt pots
-
bulbs or thermal glass
-
car windshields and glass panes
5. Metal waste
Metal waste mainly includes separately collected empty metal containers. Larger
metal objects belong with scrap metal.
Landfill waste/general waste
All of the remaining waste that cannot be sorted into the categories referred to above
or for which there is no separate container is put into general waste containers.
Hazardous waste may not be put into waste transported to a landfill.
You MAY PUT the following in metal waste collection:
+
tins and cans
+
aluminum molds and foils
+
empty and dry paint cans
+
empty aerosol cans (that do not either rattle nor hiss)
+
small metal objects, such as hinges, screws, cutlery
+
metal caps and lids, metal tea light cups
Hazardous waste (formerly toxic waste)
Hazardous waste can cause particular hazards or risks to health or the environment
due to toxicity or other properties.
Typical hazardous wastes include:
+ batteries
+
Rinse metal packaging that contained food with cold water to remove residues.
fluorescent tubes and lamps
+
small rechargeable batteries
+
paint and solvent waste
+
solid oil waste
+
laboratory waste
There are separate containers for each type of hazardous waste. Collection of
hazardous waste is always agreed separately with companies engaged in laboratory
activities.
6. Recovery as energy
You MAY PUT the following in energy waste:
”Parallel firing” is currently the primary method of waste incineration in Finland. In it,
-
plastic products marked with the plastic type identifier 01, 02, 04, 05, or 06
recycled fuel made of waste material sorted at source (primarily renewable energy)
-
plastic bags and films
replaces fossil fuels in industrial and municipal power plants, thereby decreasing
-
plastic and cardboard disposable tableware
greenhouse gas emissions in heat and power production. Another way of recovering
-
expanded polystyrene
unprocessed landfill waste as energy is mass-fired incineration in a waste power
-
foam plastic
-
paper, cardboard, and wood not suitable for separate collection
plant.
Remove food residues from packaging, rinse with cold water if necessary.
What is the difference between the incineration processes?
In parallel firing, the energy waste requires crushing before the firing process; in most
You MAY NOT PUT the following in energy waste:
cases, coarse inorganic matter must also be removed. In parallel firing, the waste
may not contain impurities, such as glass and metal (aluminum) that would interfere
-
with the firing process. As a general rule, parallel firing provides a higher efficiency
ratio in heat production than mass-fired incineration. A power plant suitable for
plastic (marked with identifier 07)
-
parallel firing can usually also use other fuels if there is not enough waste to fire.
contain a certain degree of less flammable materials. A mass-fired incineration plant
cannot use other fuels than waste.
Energy waste (recycled fuel)
foil-lined potato chip bags and cans
-
VHS or C cassettes or printer cartridges
-
folders, plastic pockets, overhead transparencies, contact paper, brown
packaging tape
-
be recovered as material but can be utilized in energy production. Such waste
includes plastic waste.
many plastics used in construction, such as wallpaper, flooring, molds,
pipes, hoses
”parallel firing plant”
Energy waste is waste that is collected and sorted separately at source that cannot
aluminum-containing products,
such as coffee packages, foil-lined juice containers,
Recovering waste as energy in a mass-fired incineration plant does not necessary
require any actual pre-processing, and with grate technology, the waste can also
PVC plastic (marked with identifier 03), compound plastic may contain PVC
-
diapers or similar hygiene products
7. Combustible waste (energy waste 2)
mass-fired incineration plant
Wastepaper
Combustible waste is municipal waste (general waste) from which bio waste and
waste fractions which have been recovered as material have been removed at
Cardboard
source. Depending on the property, the collection point has a container for general
waste or combustible waste (energy waste 2). Hazardous waste may not be put into
Bio waste
the containers.
Energy waste
Combustible waste / Energy waste 2
Currently, Technopolis locations in Finland sort:
Recyclable glass
The Waste Act (646/2011) allows municipalities to issue general provisions due to
local circumstances, applicable to the municipality or part thereof, necessary to
implementing the Act. Therefore, there may be specific requirements concerning the
sorting of waste in different locations. In addition, consignees of waste may have
different requirements for the composition of waste in different locations.
Metal waste
Landfill waste/general waste
Hazardous waste
8. Waste sorting opportunities in different locations
Oulu
additionally in restaurants
Espoo
Kuopio
Jyväskylä
Tampere
Vantaa
additionally in restaurants
additionally in restaurants
additionally in restaurants
additionally in restaurants
additionally in restaurants
Ruoholahti
additionally in restaurants
Lappeenranta
additionally in restaurants
