In 2017, 163.9 thousand tons of mixed waste and 32.7 thousand tons of segregated waste were collected in Poznań.
“Waste Management in the Metropolitan Area of Poznań” Inter-Municipal Association
Poznań and eight neighbouring municipalities (Buk, Czerwonak, Kostrzyn Wlkp., Kleszczewo, Murowana Goślina, Oborniki, Pobiedziska and Swarzędz) have created the “Waste Management in the Metropolitan Area of Poznań” Inter-Municipal Association, established to manage waste in these municipalities.
In 2017, 21 entities that signed agreements with this association on waste removal from the area of Poznań, collected a total of 163.9 thousand tons of mixed waste and 32.7 thousand tons of segregated waste, including 19.6 thousand tons of segregated green waste.
Mixed waste
Municipal Waste Thermal Treatment Facility
Municipal waste in Poznań is subjected to thermal treatment in a facility constructed as part of a Public – Private Partnership by the City of Poznań and SUEZ Zielona Energia. The project was implemented using a hybrid financing model, combining the use of domestic public funds, EU funds and private capital. The total value of the project was PLN 854.7 million.
The project became one of the main elements of the mixed waste management system, providing the city with a sustainable waste treatment facility. In 2017, which was the first full year of operation of the incinerator, 210,000 thousand tons of mixed municipal waste were delivered to be incinerated to generate 267,000 GJ of thermal energy and 85,881 MWh of electricity. The incinerator allows for the reduction of landfilling, while limiting the need for new urban landfills.
Zakład Zagospodarowania Odpadów Sp. z o.o. (Waste Management Company) in Poznań
Zakład Zagospodarowania Odpadów Sp. z o.o. (ZZO) is a single-member company owned by the City of Poznań, which deals with environmental protection in waste management (including the operation and management of a landfill and landfill reclamation, a landfill leachate treatment plant, a biogas CHP plant as well as a biocomposting plant), and manages the landfill in Suchy Las.
Landfill in Suchy Las
The landfill occupies an area of 56.76 ha and is located within the administrative borders of the Suchy Las commune and the city of Poznań. In the Waste Management Plan for the Wielkopolskie Province for 2016-2022, this landfill was granted the status of the regional municipal waste processing system for Region II. At present, the room at the landfill in Suchy Las is occupied in 83%. In 2017, a contract was signed for the execution of design and construction works aimed at reclamation of the P3 quarter along with a degassing system.
The Poznań Municipal Waste Thermal Treatment Facility won the EKOLAUR 2017 award in the “Protection of ground and waste management” category. The award is granted by the Polish Chamber of Ecology, promoting effective and innovative work for environmental protection in Poland.
During the 9th European Economic Congress held in Katowice, the Poznań waste incineration plant was granted the 2017 TOP MUNICIPAL PROJECTS award, as one of the ten best projects implemented in cooperation under a public-private partnership in the last decade.
Selective waste collection
Selective waste collection system
A selective waste collection system is in place in Poznań. Waste paper, glass and plastics are collected into two ways – in containers or bags. Waste is collected either by companies contractually bound with the “Waste Management in the Metropolitan Area of Poznań” Inter-Municipal Association or by ZZO, through e.g. three Points of Selective Collection of Municipal Waste, located at the landfill in Suchy Las and in Poznań in Wrzesińska Street and 28 Czerwca 1956 Street, as well as a Mobile Point of Selective Collection of Municipal Waste (Grapple truck), which picks up used up electrical and electronic equipment disposed of by residents. In 2017, 12.1 thousand tons of waste paper, 12.7 thousand tons of glass cullet and 8 thousand tons of plastics were collected in the city.
Large-size waste (e.g. furniture), electronic equipment, building waste, biodegradable waste, batteries and accumulators, oil and other problem waste generated in the household can also be delivered to the stationary points. In 2017, a total of 13.5 thousand tons of problem waste were collected, including 5,000 tons of bulky waste, 9.8 tons of used batteries, 35 tons of expired medicines and 766.7 tons of used up electrical and electronic equipment. Waste is kept in a storage space from which, once its sufficient quantity has been accumulated, it is sent for recovery or disposal in specialist facilities in Poland.
Biocomposting plant
The City of Poznań is in the final phase of implementing modern methods of biodegradable waste treatment. In 2017, a biocomposting plant, i.e. a facility in which separately collected biodegradable waste is subjected to biological treatment, was in the technological start-up phase. It is the second, next to the Municipal Waste Thermal Treatment Facility, key element of the system that will, besides its other benefits, enable complying with the obligation to recycle selectively collected biodegradable waste. The plant will ultimately process 30 thousand tons of waste per year. Application of modern technologies in the plant will help to comply with environmental protection standards. The fermentation and composting processes take place in tightly closed chambers. Biodegradable waste collected separately by residents of the Poznań agglomeration will be converted into electricity, thermal energy and high-quality compost. The operation of the biocomposting plant will also help to eliminate storage of such waste at the municipal landfill in Suchy Las.
Biogas CHP plant
Irrespective of the biocomposting plant, a biogas CHP plant is also used at the landfill. The CHP plant has four generator sets (200 kW, 2 x 260 kW and 504 kW) in which biogas is neutralised. Currently, the installed generation capacity in the biogas CHP plant is 1.2 MW. The generator sets are equipped with a thermal energy recovery system used to heat office, warehouse and staff rooms as well as water. In 2017, the plant generated 1.9 million m3 of biogas, used to produce 4,894 MWh of electricity, out of which 4,268 MWh were sold to external customers, and 591 MWh were used by the plant itself.
Waste water treatment plant
Since 1996, a leachate treatment plant has been in operation at the landfill site. Leachate from the waste storage area is drained away, using the bottom drainage system, through retention reservoirs to the treatment plant. After treatment, part of water is used for technological purposes, e.g. to sprinkle roads and water plants.
Industrial waste
In 2016 (the latest available data), industrial plants in Poznań generated 599.6 thousand tons of waste, including hazardous waste (by 16.8% more than in 2015). This means that in Poznań there was 2.3 thousand tons of waste per square kilometre. Despite the fact that Poznań ranks second (after Konin) among the poviats of the Wielkopolskie Province in terms of the quantity of generated industrial waste, this waste does not pose now a major threat to the environment. Over 95% of industrial waste is taken away and processed outside Poznań, where it is subjected to recovery processes (to obtain material or energy) or is disposed of; about 1% of industrial waste is recovered or disposed of on site.
In św. Michała Street in Poznań, a store of illegally collected industrial waste, including hazardous waste, was found. In 2017, pursuant to the provisions of the Act on Enforcement Proceedings, this waste (2,561 tons) was removed as part of vicarious performance. In accordance with a concluded contract the waste will be processed by the end of October 2018.