Waste management in Greenland: current situation and challenges

Waste management in Greenland (56 000 inhabitants) is characterized by landfilling, incineration and export to Denmark of small quantities of metals and hazardous waste. The annual amount of waste is estimated to about 50 000 tons but actual data are scarce. Data on the waste composition is basicall...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Waste Management & Research: The Journal for a Sustainable Circular Economy
Main Authors: Eisted, Rasmus, Christensen, Thomas H.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: SAGE Publications 2011
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0734242x10395421
http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0734242X10395421
http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full-xml/10.1177/0734242X10395421
Description
Summary:Waste management in Greenland (56 000 inhabitants) is characterized by landfilling, incineration and export to Denmark of small quantities of metals and hazardous waste. The annual amount of waste is estimated to about 50 000 tons but actual data are scarce. Data on the waste composition is basically lacking. The scattered small towns and settlements, the climate and the long transport distances between towns and also to recycling industries abroad constitute a complex situation with respect to waste management. The landfills have no collection of gas and leachate and the incinerators are small and equipped with only moderate flue gas cleaning technology. This report summarizes the current waste management situation in Greenland and identifies important challenges in improving the waste management.