BALTIC SEAENVIRONMENT PROCEEDINGS No. 59 - Helcom

facilities.
2. It is necessary to provide some money up front if actions
are to take place.
The sums of money are not necessarily large, but they
have to be strategically applied so as to get the best
results. The initial expenditure should perhaps be to
identify and publicize the problem so as to build support
in principle for some type of action. The second stage
involves spending money on training staff and on studying
the options for action.
3. It will be useful1 to apply both incentives and
disincentives.
Incentives are useful to obtain support from parties
which will be involved in waste management, such as the
industry. This incentives may for example have the form
of subsidies on equipment, infrastructure and so on.
Subsidies on investments are generally easier to control
than subsidies on operating costs (e.g. operating costs
of waste treatment units). Disincentives may have the
form of penalties on violations of applicable
regulations. Applications of incentives demonstrate the
active interest of the government in waste management,
while the application of disincentives demonstrate that
active enforcement of regulations takes place. Both will
stimulate an active approach and attitude of parties
involved in waste management.
Useful first steps
A number of practical steps should, in total, achieve an early
improvement in the waste collection and disposal situation, at
a relatively modest effort and cost. It is emphasized again,
that these steps should be pursued in parallel rather than in
any particular sequence.
In particular, while it is necessary to have an appreciation
of waste quantities and their environmental impact, care must
also be taken to ensure that the first steps lay the
foundations for a more systematic approach to waste management
in the long-term.
1. Designate the responsible agency at the national level
for initiating and co-ordinating the establishment of a
waste management strategy.
If a waste management strategy on national level does not
exist, the very first thing to do is to make a
governmental agency responsible for developing the
strategy. This may require to establish a new agency,
which should be staffed and funded properly to execute
its tasks and responsibilities.
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