Waste management concept for the municipalities of Khanty-Mansiysk

A Russian-German project was implemented in Khanty-Mansiysk from October 2010 until May 2012 which aimed to develop a sustainable urban waste management concept in Khanty-Mansiysk (see Industry and Ecology of the North, December 2010 and December 2011). Dr. Julia Kaazke (Technische Universität Berlin), Dr. Bertram Zwisele (ARGUS e.V), Prof. Dr. B.-M. Wilke (Technische Universität Berlin), Prof. Dr. Elena Lapshina (Ugra State University) present the final version of this project now.

The waste management concept (WMC) considers the waste types (1) household & commercial waste, (2) bulky waste, (3) construction & demolition waste, (4) industrial waste, (5) special waste types such as end-of–life vehicles, end-of-life tyres, batteries & accumulators, waste oil etc. (6) street cleaning residues and (7) medical waste (see Figure). Each waste type may contain hazardous components. Municipal solid waste comprises waste types (1) to (5). Industrial waste can be defined as production residues which are often hazardous and mainly homogeneous. In Khanty- Mansiysk municipality industrial waste is not distinguished from Municipal solid waste (MSW), neither in the collection nor in the disposal phase. Although it can be assumed that industrial waste is not generated in significant quantities it should be collected and disposed of separately from MSW.

Hazardous and non-hazardous waste have to be kept separately by the waste generator. The collection, treatment and disposal of hazardous and non-hazardous waste have to be organised separately as well. For waste flows significant in volume such as construction and demolition waste or other mass waste streams from industry, it could be advantageous to keep these waste types separate from MSW. According to the potential risk of different waste types at least three classes of landfills can be distinguished sanitary landfill for household waste, hazardous waste landfill and inert landfill for demolition waste. They should be considered in the WMC. Recyclables should also be kept separate at source and collected in specific containers provided for this purpose. Alternatively, recyclables can be gained through waste treatment methods such as Mechanical-biological treatment (MBT). However, the collection of recyclables together with residual waste will reduce the quality of those recyclables significantly.

Illustration of waste management concept

The implementation of the waste management concept includes organisational and technical measures. Before implementing separate collection and MBT plant, further feasibility studies and pilot projects should be stipulated. Especially the marketing conditions for recyclables and Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) should be investigated in more detail. Before starting with the separate collection of metals, paper, glass and plastics, the motivation of the population, the achievable collection rates, the quality, etc. should be analysed by means of a pilot project in a defined area of Khanty-Mansiysk.

The detailed description of the waste management concept and further information about the project can be found at: www.ugrasu.ru.

The final version of the sustainable urban waste management concept was presented in co-operation with the local authorities at a conference on this project in Khanty-Mansiysk in April 2012. Representatives of urban administration and businesses from Khanty-Mansiysk, Nishnivartovsk, Perm, Surgut, Neftyuganz and Berlin took part in the conference.

Ultimately, it was very challenging for the TU Berlin to advise the development of a waste management concept under these climatic conditions, as well as the sparse population and the rapidly growing economy. On the scientific level, a contribution to reduce pollution caused by uncontrolled waste disposal was suggested by ARGUS e.V. It is a non-profit organisation that consults on and implements environmentally oriented projects, as well as to provide the information and data management for all relevant issues in the areas of waste management and the environment.

The further development of methods for data collection at an international level was especially interesting for ARGUS e.V. An important contribution to sustainable environmental protection in the city of Khanty- Mansiysk was made through the consulting and training sessions carried out by German experts.

This project has been funded mainly by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety with means of the Advisory Assistance Programme for Environmental Protection in the Countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia. It has been technically supervised by the Federal Environment Agency Federal Environment Agency of the Federal Republic of Germany (Umweltbundesamt, UBA). The content of this publication lies within the responsibility of the authors.

Both institutions can be contacted for further projects: