Waste management

Ensure that you dispose of or recycle your waste in an appropriate manner. Every property must join organised waste management. Summer cottages must also be connected to organised waste management, unless it can be proven that the property is not in usable condition.

The municipality or a municipal waste management company is responsible for organising the waste management of municipal waste generated in dwellings. Your own municipality can provide any information you need on joining your municipality's waste management system, sorting and other waste management arrangements.

If you have any questions related to waste management, please contact your municipality or the waste management company providing the service. The contact details for municipalities are available for example in Suomi.fi and on each municipality’s own website.

Make an effort to avoid creating waste and sort the waste you generate waste.

Some waste residents can expose of in their building’s own waste containers, while other waste must be taken to a regional collection or reception site. Small electrical appliances can be taken to shops that sell them, as in practice all large markets accept small electronics and other small electrical devices.

The municipality must also organise the reception of hazardous waste from residents. Paints, adhesives, varnishes, and other hazardous chemicals can be taken to the reception points of your municipality. Medicine waste must be taken to a pharmacy.

Find the collection points in your area.Opens in a new window.

Municipal waste charges cover the costs of waste management for which the municipality is responsible. The waste charge must be in line with the service level provided by the municipality. Waste charges should encourage the public to reduce the amount of waste they generate, reduce its harmfulness and recycle waste.

Regional reception of certain types of waste such as packaging waste (plastic, cardboard, glass and metal packages) electrical and electronic waste, batteries, wastepaper and vehicle tyres is the responsibility of the manufacturers and importers. They must provide reception points where people can take the waste free of charge.

In many municipalities, a smaller fee is charged for waste that is sorted and fit for recycling than for mixed waste. The grounds for determining the waste charge can be found in the waste tariff approved by the municipality. The property holder may apply to the municipality for a modification of their waste charge, so it is more reasonable, if the amount of waste is particularly small and if, for example, the property is empty due to the property owner requiring institutional care or living abroad. In all cases, the payment criteria must be fair and reasonable.

Text edited by: Suomi.fi editorial team

Updated: 1/10/2021

Waste management

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