On February 5 2019 the session of the 77th Scientific Conference of the University of Latvia “Waste Management in the 21st Century” was held with the aim to promote co-operation between waste policy developers, local government and industry representatives, as well as to present the industry with innovations, solutions and innovations.
Representatives of the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Latvia, the Association of Local and Regional Governments of Latvia, representatives of waste management companies, as well as representatives, researchers and practitioners from other local and foreign universities and institutions (more than 60 participants from 6 countries) were widely represented in a solid waste management related section of the conference.
In the scope of the meeting, a wide-ranging discussion was held on the latest regulation of the European Union in the sector, the challenge posed by the new regulatory requirements both in the field of national legislation and in the practical implementation of requirements in the coming years. The discussion highlighted a number of issues that require closer cooperation and exchange of information between industry partners and, in the future, additions or clarifications to regulatory enactments and possibly environmental policy related to waste management. The discussion revealed that in the future, the disposal of waste at landfills will be significantly restricted, in Latvia it is necessary to significantly increase waste recycling capacity, as well as new, innovative solutions for better and more efficient recycling of various types of waste and recovery of valuable raw materials.
The lessons learned from the discussion are particularly valuable in the context of the UL project “Variable fuel gasification for municipal solid waste recovery”. It is planned that the conclusions of the conference will be taken as the basis for elaboration of recommendations for clarification of regulatory enactments in the field of waste management.
