Last year, RMK cleaned up 250 tonnes of waste from the state forest 12.03

‘People who are not disturbed by cowberries and mushrooms growing between the waste, continue to take their waste to the forest. Removing waste from the state forest is a necessary job for us, because waste that is introduced into nature not only looks bad but also poses a direct threat to the environment and forest residents. That is why we have been cleaning up waste from the state forest for the past 15 years, and the situation in the forests shows that we must continue to do so in the future,’ Andres Sepp, the Chief Forester of RMK, said.
Mostly, household and construction waste, furniture, as well as glass, metal, and hazardous waste are all dumped in the forest. Last year, EUR 98,000 was spent on cleaning up 250 tonnes of waste. The works were performed by RMK’s contractual partners Ragn-Sells and Eesti Keskkonnateenused.

Instead of taking waste into the forest, it should be taken to a waste treatment plant. In the map application kuhuviia.ee, you can see the location of the nearest waste treatment plants where waste can be transported. In addition, local governments occasionally organise waste collection rounds for local communities, so you would not have to go far from home to get rid of your waste. Local government websites contain information on collection rounds and other options for getting rid of your waste.

After recycling, the waste can be reused, thereby reducing the need to acquire new raw materials. Plastic is a material with an especially large environmental footprint because it decomposes for hundreds of years. Therefore, RMK gives collected and sorted plastic waste new life by using posts made of plastic waste to mark roads in the state forest.

To reduce littering, RMK has installed waste cameras at the most problematic locations, which help to forward information on litterers to the respective local government or the Environmental Inspectorate, enabling the offender to be punished.

Moreover, RMK encourages all watchful people to take photos of forest litterers, mark down their registration plate numbers and forward the evidence to the Environmental Inspectorate via the e-mail address 1313@112.ee or by calling the environmental information phone at 1313.

If the litterer cannot be identified, the land owner shall clean the forest, which shall be RMK in case of the state forest.

RMK is the keeper, protector and manager of the forest and other natural biotic communities belonging to the Estonian state. RMK earns a profit for the state through forest management, grows reforestation material, and organises forest and nature protection works. In addition, RMK creates opportunities within its recreational and protected areas for moving about in nature and shapes nature awareness.

Further information:
Andres Sepp
RMK Chief Forester
E-mail: andres.sepp@rmk.ee
Phone: +372-505-5932