About Kujala Waste Centre

The Kujala Waste Centre in the city of Lahti, Finland, collects biowaste and bio residues and processes these into biogas, biofuel, compost, and fertilizer. The centre also collects hazardous Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE (EU, 2019). The main operator at Kujala Waste Centre is Päijät‐ Häme Waste Management Ltd (PHJ), which provides waste management for ten municipalities and offers seven waste reception stations for residents.

The Challenge

As the global population grows and urbanisation expands, so does industry. However, increased industrialisation leads to greater waste generation. According to the World Bank, the world generates 2.01 billion tonnes of waste yearly, with this amount projected to rise to 3.40 billion tonnes by 2050 (Kaza et al., 2021).

The Circular Solution

PHJ has employed the principles of industrial symbiosis (IS) in the city of Lahti to optimise waste processing, treatment, and recycling. IS is a form of circular economy

that connects businesses from various industries to increase waste valorisation, improve resource efficiency, and reduce environmental impact (Trokanas et al., 2014). The Kujala Waste Centre project has various waste related businesses in a single location spanning 70 hectares (Ministry of the Environment

of Finland, 2022), allowing outputs from one business to be easily transferred to another for reuse or further processing.

Salpakierto contributes to developing IS in the Kujala Waste Centre and invites new companies to the area (Ministry

of the Environment of Finland, 2022). Tarpaper Recycling Finland Ltd. has a facility in the Kujala Waste Centre where it receives, stores and processes roofing felt containing bitumen (Ministry of the

Environment of Finland, 2022). The roofing felt is crushed into bitumen crumbs, which is used as a bitumen substitute in the asphalt sector, such as at NCC Industry Ltd.’s asphalt factory in Kujala (Ministry of the Environment of Finland, 2022).

Climate Impact

Kujala Waste Centre receives approximately 200,000 tonnes of waste every year. Approximately 85,000 tonnes of the waste received is municipal,

and the remaining 115,000 tonnes is production waste. Nearly 100% of the material is recovered (Ministry of the Environment of Finland, 2022). In 2018, the amount of energy generated from landfill waste was equivalent to the annual heating energy consumption of roughly 13,900 detached houses (EU, 2019). About 70% of landfill gas is directed to Hartwall Ltd.’s soft drink factory, where it is used to create steam for bottle washing (Ministry of the Environment of Finland, 2022),

and around 30% of the biogas is utilized at the Kujala Waste Centre to generate electricity and heat at the microturbine factory (Ministry of the Environment of Finland, 2022).

Replicability

Replicability can be inspired by the Lahti region’s municipality approach in coordinating the principles of industrial symbiosis and waste management practices. In 2022, Ireland's municipal waste recycling rate was 41%, meaning the country will face significant challenges to meet the upcoming EU recycling targets for 2025 to 2035(Environmental Protection Agency, 2024). Ireland is also strongly reliant on export markets, particularly for municipal waste, hazardous waste, packaging waste, WEEE and biowastes treatment. An estimated 39% of all municipal waste managed was exported in 2022 (Environmental Protection Agency, 2024). so the country is clearly missing out on opportunities for repurposing waste materials. Addressing this waste management issue would also aid Ireland in meeting its commitments under the EU Circular Economy Action Plan, the EU Green Deal and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Some significant IS projects include:

• Kalundborg Symbiosis, the world’s first IS initiative that has evolved over the past 50 years, with a partnership of 17 public and private companies, with more than 30 different streams of excess resources flowing between them.

  
  

• British Sugar is the leading producer of sugar for the British and Irish food and beverage sectors, they utilise waste materials from their sugar production process, as well as certain external partnerships, to make 12 different saleable products (European Union, 2023).