Waste

Copenhagen, Denmark

Copenhagen's waste plan 2008: Copenhagen puts only 3% of waste into landfill

What is it?

Copenhagen's "Waste Plan 2008" is a detailed plan to reduce waste and improve management over the period of 2005-08. Copenhagen’s aim is simple: less waste, more separation. To achieve this, the city must be flexible and take into consideration the differing needs and habits of every citizen and business around the clock. Waste drop off points are local and have flexible hours of operation.

How does it work?

The Plan is revised every four years and covers a twelve-year period, meaning it is long-term, responsive and adaptive. City has five objectives for waste management:

1. There must be less waste and less hazardous substances in the waste.
2. Waste resources must be better utilized, reducing the amount of waste to be incinerated and put in landfill.
3. As much of the environment must be protected as possible for the money.
4. The waste system must be adapted to the city.

Thus Copenhagen focuses greatly on waste prevention through awareness-raising, local regulations, composting, waste reuse and reduction of packaging. The city also has promotes separation. For example, there are strict agreements with waste contractors to only collect separated waste, meaning households who do not separate their rubbish cannot have it collected. This means that lower levels of waste require treatment – 39% of this is incinerated (with the energy providing heat and power to 70,000 households) and building waste is recycled. Only 3% of waste goes to landfill.

Key results

The system has directly reduced CO2 emissions by 40,000 tons CO2 and generated 1,000,000 MWh of additional energy — enough to power 70,000 homes annually — by turning waste to energy.

Next steps

At many construction sites, there is room for improvement of waste separation. The City of Copenhagen is working closely with developers, contractors, and haulers to have more building waste separated. There may be a need for adapting the rules for separation to match the successes in other areas.

Application

Adaptable: Making the system adaptable to the individual habits of households and businesses is the key to success

Providing options: Finding creative and practical ways for people to dispose of their waste easily and correctly

Easy separation: It must be easy to separate waste. User-friendly systems, clear information and involvement of citizens and businesses are key words in the waste strategy. Users must know how to separate waste and why. Waste from households makes up around one quarter of all waste in the City. A large portion can be recycled if it is separated at source.