Reuse and recycling are important now and in the future, and municipalities are largely responsible for meeting the EU’s requirements for reuse, recycling and waste management. While some local authorities are taking a “wait and see” approach, frontrunners like Saku and Lääne-Harju in Estonia are actively exploring all of their options. This is why they worked with consultancies Civitta and Alkranel to develop basic operational and financial models for local reuse and recycling solutions. Focus was put on solutions with high levels of citizen engagement, such as repair cafes, repair rooms, small reuse points and large circulation centers. This range of options can handle limited items such as textiles and small household goods or a broader range of items including building materials, furniture and standard recyclables.
Today, they share the results with other Estonian municipalities to make reuse and recycling more accessible across the country.
Some interesting examples from the region:
Denmark, Norway, Finland and Sweden have multiple examples of solutions that have been implemented that are useful to learn from. ReTuna Återbruksgalleria, perhaps now a familiar department store in Sweden that only sells reused and recycled goods, was established in 2015. It’s an initiative from municipality-owned company Eskilstuna Energi och Miljö, and most importantly, the model works, they reported 15.4M SEK (€1.5M) in product sales in 2020.
The non-profit Tartu Paranduskelder (Repair Center) is a well known facility in Estonia with a goal of education through action. People can come here to learn how to repair and maintain things with on-site tools and through the support of experts who provide instruction and advice. Different days of the week feature different experts, covering topics such as sewing, electronics repair, bike repair and general fixes for items such as toys, suitcases, tables, etc. Services are accessed on a donation basis, with an average donation of €5 in 2023. Public funding is needed to support the ongoing operation of this facility.
The reuse rooms at the Tallinn Circular Economy centers had just launched when this report was assembled, and they were very popular, especially for textiles, at the time of report writing. These locations are a place where citizens can drop things off and pick things up, and the Tallinn team is learning from users and making adjustments and improvements over time. This year these centers have also been a popular visit for other Estonian municipalities who want to learn more and develop similar solutions in their own areas.
Reuse insights from local citizens:
The report team got feedback from local residents to inform their business model development work. Here are the top answers and % of respondents for each question.
Question | % respondents in Saku | % respondents in Lääne-Harju |
Which reusable products do you throw away the most? | Shoes, clothes, textiles - 61% | Shoes, clothes, textiles - 54% |
Where or to whom do you give used things? | Uuskaskutuskeskus (local reuse organization) - 64% | Friends, relatives, acquaintances - 62% |
Which reusable items would you be most interested in purchasing? | Shoes, clothes, textiles - 60% | Furniture - 60% |
What is the biggest obstacle to reusing things in your municipality? | Lack of reuse points, scarcity - 36% | Lack of reuse points, scarcity - 41% |
Report recommendations and resources:
Lääne-Harju has limited options for textile collection and reuse, and they work with Uuskasutuskeskus to carry out a collection route 2-3 times per year. Citizen surveys found there was a good amount of interest in repair centers being established in Lääne-Harju. The report identifies potential for such services and also recommends first piloting them to get a clearer picture of the actual willingness of citizens to use them.
Saku has already established small scale reuse points where citizens can drop off and pick up reusable items and a typical collection container managed by Humana, which citizens use very actively. Basic repair services are offered by companies in the municipality, and the report suggests pilots of repair cafes to better understand the need and measure citizen interest in repairing things themselves. Should this be determined as a viable route, the compactness of the municipality would support consolidating several services in one place.
Business model and budget guidance is outlined clearly in the report for a range of different types of facilities and services that handle several types of materials for reuse and recycling. Several business model canvas examples and budget forecasts for the installation of facilities and services are also available as a useful starting point for other municipalities to use.
Moving ahead:
TEXroad is working together with Lääne-Harju and Saku to identify the most viable options from the report for the coming 2 years, based on local and national developments in 2024. Together with the support of Eesti Jäätmehoolduskeskus (the Estonian Waste Management Center), an updated business model canvas, operational financial overview and potential scenarios after implementation are being prepared so that Saku, Lääne-Harju and other municipalities can take action.
The original report is available here (in Estonian).