Waste Minimization and Resources Use Optimization Conference

June 10^th 2004, University of Oulu, Tietotalo: TS 101

This Waste minimization/Resource use optimization conference day was brought to you by the RESOPT project. RESOPT is multidisciplinary consortium that addreses resource use optimization issues in Northern Ostrobothnia. The project is financed by the Ministry of Environment, under the Eco-efficient society program.

During this first year of the project, the main theme was waste minimization, but we also touched upon the issues of waste definitions, waste legislation, clean technologies, by-product utilization, waste treatment, and Waste Management Theory development. Theoretical and practical research under these subject headings was carried out at the Department of Process and Environmental Engineering under the supervision of Professor Riitta Keiski, and at the Department of Chemistry, where the research was supervised by Docent Toivo Kuokkanen.

The project also organized a post-graduate course on waste minimization and resource use optimization from March 28th to April 2nd, in collaboration with the Graduate School in Chemical Engineering, and with guidance provided by the Sustainable Wastes Management Unit at the University College Northampton (UCN), in U.K., where Professsor Paul S. Phillips, and Ms. Kathy Holley are gratefully acknowledged for supporting us with lecture and exercise material, waste minimization guides and reports, and advise regarding waste minimization clubs. Course participants had the opportunity to conduct waste audits in finish industry and test audit tools developed by the U.K. Envirowise Best Practice Programme, and the Wastes Management Team of UCN.

This conference was organized to provide an open forum to RESOPT project members and collaborators as well as waste minimization and resources use optimization course participants to present the outcome of their research and exercise works performed under the subject headings of waste minimization and resources use optimization. These two related concepts are used together because of the different scope they are offering: while resources use optimization refers to reducing the exploitation of natural resources, the concern being their sufficiency; waste minimization refers to reducing the amount and the hazard of wastes generated at a source, thus management of the source is in focus. An eco-efficient society will have to entail these approaches equally, hence the use of both notions.

On behalf of the RESOPT project and the conference organizing committee, thanks to all authors for their contribution, we hope that our co-operation will continue. All RESOPT project members and collaborators are gratefully acknowledged for their excellent work and invaluable assistance during this first year. Thanks are also due to the organizing committee for arranging this event.

On the 2^nd day of June 2004,

Eva Pongrácz
RESOPT project manager

Organizing committee

Prof. Riitta Keiski
Dr. Eva Pongrácz
M.Sc.(Eng.) Jenni Ylä-Mella
M.Sc.(Chem.) Verónica García
M.Sc.(Chem.) Sisko Kvist
Jani Nurminen
Teemu Mikkola

Contact person
Eva Pongrácz
4PYOLÄM; PL 4300
90014 University of Oulu
Phone: 08-553 2345
Fax: 08-553 2369
E-mail: eva.pongracz(at)oulu.fi

Last updated July 12th 2004 by Eva Pongrácz