Background St. Petersburg is the largest city on the Baltic Sea, with a developed industrial sector and a population of about five million people. According to the Helsinki Commission (HELCOM), the city produces 20% of the pollution in the Baltic Sea. Municipal solid waste (MSW) contaminated with heavy metals and soluble hazardous substances is one of the main sources of pollution. St. Petersburg produces approximately 5 million cubic metres of Municipal Solid Waste ( MSW) per year. Prior to the project, there was no selective waste collection, and no appropriate policies for waste minimisation, reuse, or recycling. St. Petersburg therefore needed to improve its MSW management policy. Objectives The project's specific objective was to elaborate and implement an Environmental Action Plan for municipal solid waste management in St. Petersburg: • Characterisation of solid waste streams (quantity, composition, etc.) and current management (legal framework, separate collection, treatment methods, etc.) • Environmental Management Action Plan for MSW including waste minimisation, separate collection, reuse and recycling, transport, environmentally sound treatment, and environmentally sound disposal of ultimate residues; and • Implementation of a pilot demonstration project based on recommendations of the plan. Results The overall goal of the project was reduction of the Baltic Sea pollution resulting from MSW generated in Saint Petersburg. The targets of the project were studying the environmentally acceptable methods of municipal solid waste management, modern technologies of their treatment, elaboration and approval of an optimal MSW management scenario and testing this scenario via a pilot demonstration project. The first step was investigation of amounts and composition of MSW in Saint Petersburg. On the basis of these data, possible scenarios of future development of MSW management system, including modern technologies of waste treatment, recycling of secondary materials and environmentally safe disposal, were developed and analysed and an optimal scenario was chosen. On the basis of this scenario, an Environmental Action Plan for MSW management in Saint Petersburg was developed by a group of experts. Public hearings were organised. After receiving positive public opinion, the document was presented to the St, Petersburg city administration. As a result, a governmental order was issued with approval of the list of measures on MSW management in St. Petersburg for the period 2005-2014. To test some of the conclusions of the action plan, a pilot demonstration project was implemented. The project concentrates on separate collection at source which is a key factor of successful reform of MSW management systems. The necessary prototypes were developed and equipment was purchased; consumable materials for stimulation of public participation in separate collection were bought and distributed. The project resulted in a 30% reduction in mixed waste collected at the new collection points, allowing transportation to be a halved. Collection of bulky waste into special containers was also successful, reducing illegal dumping and incineration in the project area. The collection of recyclable waste was 20% of the total amount of waste generated, of which 70% could be then reused as, for example, compost. On the basis of these results and on the Environmental Action Plan, the city authorities further decided to continue installing separate waste collection facilities in the city. More than 4,000 containers were purchased in 2006 with further plans to double this number by 2009; and 2,000 new sites for separate waste collection (supported by six sorting and reloading stations, as well as by two new landfills) were planned. Finally, private operators have established some 20 separate stations for collection of recyclable waste fractions in 2006. The beneficiary paid considerable attention to public awareness raising as one of the key factors in project demonstration success. Leaflets, posters, banners and booklets were printed, the brochure with an outline of the project results was published, and a website was created. Various presentations and training sessions, which were carried out over the course of the project, helped ensure better public understanding and sustainability of the project results. Most measures developed under the framework of the project were included in the long-term plans of the city administration. The pilot demonstration project became a catalyst for the development of network of separate municipal waste collection points across the city.