Improvement of the safety management of the waste collection process

All safety risks of the waste collection process had not been identified. For example, the safety plan did not identify level crossings and other traffic safety issues as risks, there was no handling process for feedback, and orientation was deficient. The deficiencies in work instructions, orientation and supervision form the prerequisites for the establishment of high-risk working methods.

The safety management related to the waste collection process shall take comprehensively into account the requirements of the work processes and the identification of occupational safety and traffic safety risks. Instructions shall be drawn up for the work processes and the orientation of the employees, and they shall be documented. Processes for handling feedback shall be defined in order to improve the operations.

A more extensive nationwide survey of the safety of waste collection processes should be initiated, with the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities possibly as the responsible body. A joint survey would provide different actors with tools to improve safety.

In its latest tendered acquisitions, Lapin Jätehuolto kuntayhtymä Lapeco (the joint municipal authority for waste management in Lapland) has paid attention to safety plans and feedback systems. Contractors are obliged to familiarise their employees with matters related to the operations. Customers, on the other hand, familiarise drivers with their own activities as part of driver training.
There are no national guidelines on the matter.
In its statement, Suomen Kiertovoima ry, which represents municipal waste management companies, states that the primary responsibility for ensuring the safety of waste transport lies with the transport company and the party in charge of road/fairway management, not with Suomen Kiertovoima ry.
Finnish Transport and Logistics SKAL, on the other hand, have made it their business to inform their member companies involved in the waste transport sector about the risks associated with level crossings and how these should be taken into account in transport operations by the end of 2026.