REGIONAL PECULIARITIES OF WASTE MANAGEMENT IN UKRAINE

Abstract

The presented article is carried out within the framework of the project APENA-3 (EuropeAid/140209/DH/SER/UA) on topical issues of regional distribution of waste generation and management, which is the basis for understanding their territorial features and differences in Ukraine. The purpose of the research was to substantiate the regions as the culmination centres of waste generation and management – in general and by hazard classes, and to rank the regions according to a number of relevant criteria. Structural-dynamic and graphical analysis were used in the research. The sample covers 24 regions of Ukraine and Kyiv city with a respective set of indicators. The study revealed an uneven distribution in terms of waste categories and areas. Some oblasts showed clear culminating positions according to several criteria. During the study period, Ukraine as a whole showed a negative trend of growth of waste not used for further processing and, in particular, incinerated without useful energy. Against this background, there was a much lower share of waste disposal and incineration with a beneficial effect, in general for Ukraine it was a downward trend. In some oblasts, high intra-regional efficiency of waste management of different hazard classes has been revealed, regardless of their weight in the country. Some regions, generating most of the waste, have also managed to dispose it, but this situation is not a general trend. The analysis of the regional distribution of waste generation and management also revealed that most regions and communities receiving large numbers of internally displaced persons during the hostilities in Ukraine (in Western and Central parts of Ukraine) were mostly not leaders in waste management previously, so they objectively lack the necessary capacity and practical experience to manage large waste flows in a case of their critical increase. In the future, it is recommended in the waste management system to develop a policy of forming appropriate reserves of operational & infrastructural capacities and maintaining resources to respond more flexibly to critical waste increases.