The Minister of the Environment Mr Villu Reiljan participates in the opening of the first Estonian animal waste management plant on Friday, 28 January. This animal waste management plant, which is located in Ebavere Village in Väike-Maarja Rural Municipality and is owned by Public Limited Company Animal Waste Management (Loomsete Jäätmete Käitlemise AS), has been under construction since 2001. The building of the plant was finished already by September 2004, and as the test period of last months was also successful, it is now time to hold a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony. Since the beginning of this year, animal waste can only be handled in a waste management plant constructed specially for this purpose. This means that it is forbidden to bury the waste of farm animals and other animal waste related to food manufacturing. In the middle of the 1990s, more than 120 animal waste burial sites were registered in the Register of Waste Disposal Sites. As burial is now completely forbidden, these areas have to be reconditioned. Besides the fact that the construction of an animal waste management plant was an important subject within the Agricultural Chapter of the accession negotiations held between Estonia and the European Union, it is also an important environmental project, as launching the operation of a plant which corresponds to modern environmental requirements allows to eliminate the risk of environmental pollution and possible spread of infections that may accompany the burial of animal waste. According to calculations, only one plant of this kind is needed to meet the demand of the whole Estonia. During the transitional period, however, some problems related to the handling of animal waste with a lower degree of risk are likely to occur. As a result of animal waste processing, meat-and-bone meal is produced. It is strictly forbidden to use this meal for animal feed. The meal is burnt either in Kunda cement plant or in Häädemeeste expanded clay plant. The construction of this animal waste management plant was financed by the European Union PHARE programme and by the state of Estonia. The total cost of the plant is approximately EEK 100 million. The animal waste management plant was built by Merko Ehitus AS and the technology was installed by the German company UMAG Technologie GmbH. Further information |
