Organic waste for the soil, not for the sea

In the Eastern part of the Gulf of Finland basin, farms and households produce biogenic pollutions to rivers, springs and the Baltic Sea. Common sources are small scale agriculture run-off, gardening communities and inadequate rural wastewater management. Within the Coalition Сlean Вaltic program and the ‘Small Scale Solutions’ project supported by BaltCF in 2017-2019 a Public Water Control Map was launched, showing the results of a nitrates investigation and potential pollution sources. However, not all pollution sources are clarified yet, and in 2020 new sources were found.

The project aims at raising the local knowledge of and support for sustainable organic waste management in the rural area around the Gulf of Finland. This is to create long term and sustainable change of the methods used in the rural areas as of today.

Project activities and effects

Project Goal:

• The project aims at reducing eutrophication in the Baltic Sea via reduction of biogenic pollutions from diffuse land sources. This through:

  • Promoting sustainable methods of organic waste management, organic agriculture, nutrient recycling in small farms and rural households.
  • Engaging people to investigate biogens in water bodies and clarify the potential sources of pollution in their area.

  Disseminating results and develop recommendations to decision-makers on the legislation and state solutions to improve organic waste-management systems on the local level.

Activities:

Promoting sustainable methods:

• Develop publication with practical recommendations on farm waste, garden waste, food waste and wastewater management for small pollutants – farms, individual houses etc.
• Organize multistakeholder dialogue via meetings/round tables with stakeholders, interested in eco-friendly organic waste management
• Help active stakeholders to put eco-solutions into practice and provide them methodical help and reasonable investments and consultations
• Organize study tours to get acquainted with best practices of organic waste management, organic agriculture, nutrient recycling in small farms and rural households.

Engaging people:

• Develop public watch of nutrient pollutions in water bodies
• Re-development, actualization and update of public River Watch methodology
• Train volunteers (including local residents), and equip them with tools for investigation of basic water quality analysis
• Organize methodology and results exchange events, including youth river conference and River Festival
• Develop mobile version of Public Map of water quality as simplified system for collecting information from researchers and entering data from a smartphone

Dissemination and recommendation

• Establish an eco-tour as a main result of the project through best local solutions at the project sites to scale up the results
• Organize course of eco-tours for travel agents, journalists, local authorities, activists and representatives of rural communities
• Organize multistakeholder events for the dialogue with authorities and business on the prospects and challenges for effective promotion of good solutions, needed legislative, methodological and practical support

Impressions: