Waste management at the summer cottage requires more independent initiative than in the city. At the cottage, you should pay attention to preventing the generation of waste, as waste management arrangements are often more difficult than those at your permanent residence. The less waste you produce, the easier it usually is for you.
Sort and compost
Try to recover your waste to the best extent possible. Sorting will reduce the amount of waste ending up in landfills and promote recovery. Take burnable waste, recyclable cardboard, paper, glass, metal and other recoverable waste material to a collection point. Your collection point can be shared with neighbours, maintained by a road maintenance association or located at a regional collection point. Decomposable waste belongs to a well-maintained compost.
Put landfill waste into a mixed waste container. Do not bury your waste or litter the environment.
• If you use your cottage a lot and have a driveway suitable for a garbage lorry, you should have a mixed waste container of your own.
• If you only use your cottage occasionally and there is a neighbour located nearby, you can have a mixed waste container shared with your neighbour.
• Shared containers are a good alternative in areas with a lot of recreational homes. Cottage owners’ associations or road maintenance associations can provide shared containers for recoverable materials and mixed waste.
Collection methods vary by municipality
More information about the practices and services at the locality of your cottage is available from L&T or the municipality’s environmental officer, for example.