Page 22 - Waste-to-Energy in the Danube Strategy Region. Challenges and Prospects

local politicians are not interested in discussing the waste management topic because

implementing advanced WtE technologies results in an increase in waste management fees for
citizens. The cost of improving waste management systems for populations with lower incomes,

such as in Bulgaria, Moldova, Romania, and Ukraine, is the reason why the political focus lies

elsewhere. Insufficient legislative support and lack of political will create an unpredictable market

environment, which is not very attractive for investors (Briese and Westholm 2012).

Additional problems regarding some EU member states stem from the lack of
implementation of existing waste policies transposed from EU law. These could potentially create

tens of thousands of jobs and generate billions in turnover if full implementation were achieved.

This could open the way to greater recycling rates as well as sorted residual waste that could be
treated thermally. States like Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary and Romania are in slightly different

positions regarding the state of their waste management systems. However, the latest country

reports prepared by the EC suggest one common problem—implementation of waste

management policies remains a challenge. As a result, several sectoral targets have not been met
in these states. In the case of Romania in particular, problems with compliance with EU legislation

are prevalent (EC 2017a).

Thirdly, weak regulation of landfilling plays an important role in the DSR countries. Only

Germany and Austria have extensive landfill bans. According to Eurostat, the worst situation is in
1
Bulgaria and Serbia where more than 80% of waste (excluding major mineral wastes) ends in
landfills. Croatia, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia, all with landfilling rates above 45%, are also

above the EU average (Eurostat 2014). This situation suggests that the landfilling industry is a

competitor with WtE for waste streams. These high levels of landfilling can be attributed to the
relatively lower prices for disposing of waste at landfills. With such landfilling option, many

municipalities choose to dispose of their waste at landfills instead of WtE facilities, thus removing

the incentive for WtE. Such situation also creates lock-in and path dependency whereby both

landfilling companies and municipalities oppose the rise of landfill fees, which would result in WtE
becoming more competitive (Tramba 2018).

1 Mineral wastes are inert waste streams with high volume and mass but no energy applications and minimal recycling
potential.
Project co-funded by the European Union
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