Solid waste management in Croatia in response to the European Landfill Directive

Abstract

The European Landfill Directive 99/31/EC represents the most influential piece of waste legislation on the management of municipal solid waste. In addition to technical standards regarding the design and location of landfills, it calls for a decrease in the amount of biodegradable waste landfilled. In order to meet the reduction targets set in the Landfill Directive, national solid waste strategies need to be changed. This article outlines the impact of the Landfill Directive on the Croatian waste management strategy and discusses the key challenges of its implementation. In addition, three scenarios of future waste management (mechanical biological pre-treatment, waste-to-energy and landfilling) have been investigated and evaluated regarding environmental impacts and affordability. The results of the analysis show that Croatia has transposed the said Directive into its own legislation in an exemplary way. The developed national waste management strategy foresees the set up of a separate collection of recyclables, waste pre-treatment of MSW, as well as the upgrading of existing disposal sites to sanitary landfills. However, the practical progress of carrying out provisions implemented on paper is lagging behind. Concerning the investigated scenarios the results of the evaluation indicate that mechanical biological pre-treatment in conjunction with separate collection of recyclables appears to be the most feasible option (in terms of economic and ecologic parameters). This result is in line with the proposed national waste management strategy.