The Arctic was once untouched and pristine. However, over the years, the polar environment has experienced ecological damage caused by extensive resource exploration, military activities, and contamination from sources originating outside of the region. The extent and implications of the human-induced pollution legacy are still awaiting comprehensive estimation, measures, and solutions.

Based on research published in 2013, the coastal Arctic Zone of the Russian Federation alone contained up to 4 million tons of industrial and construction waste and up to 12 million iron barrels. And apart from the challenges associated with the historical legacies of exploration, Arctic plastic pollution is another escalating problem that impacts the region’s ecosystem and residents who are already dealing with the pressures of a rapidly changing climate. Underscoring the urgency of the issue at a regional level, Norway emphasized joint collaborative initiatives to tackle marine and plastic pollution in its 2023-2025 Arctic Council Chairship Program.

Unlike industrial and other forms of pollution, the long-standing, pervasive problem of municipal solid waste in Arctic cities receives comparatively little attention. Scientific estimates show that residents across the Arctic produce more waste annually (0.62 tons per capita versus 0.3 tons per capita globally), while also having lower rates of waste collection and recycling than the rest of the world.

Landfills remain a major solid waste processing method in many parts of the region. However, the projected temperature rise in the Arctic could lead to the decomposition of large quantities of solid waste maintained at low temperatures. It will likely result in further surface, groundwater, soil, and air contamination—as well as additional risks to the ecosystem and well-being of northern residents.

As Arctic cities grapple with waste issues, it is essential that they develop comprehensive strategies for reducing waste disposal into landfills that will help municipalities become cleaner, more sustainable, and more resilient in a rapidly warming Arctic.

Specific Problems in Arctic Solid Waste Management

Governing municipal solid waste management (MSWM) in Arctic cities is an important example of how to address a crucial environmental problem under socioeconomic, climatic, and geographical constraints. These limitations primarily deal with high waste handling and processing costs, but they also entail several additional factors.

Small populations in northern cities increase the expenses of MSWM because waste is collected in insufficient volumes to make its processing cost-effective. Harsh climatic conditions and remote geographies also make the construction, maintenance, and operation of waste management facilities difficult and expensive for Arctic cities with local budget constraints and a dependence on external funding. Also, businesses that do establish locally funded material recovery facilities often struggle to find buyers for their manufactured products from secondary resources.

An additional challenge is that low temperatures and permafrost zones make it impossible to apply landfill disposal technologies that are widely used in temperate climatic conditions to manage MSW. For example, solid waste freezes in the winter during its maintenance and transportation and is delivered to landfills in a partially frozen state, making sorting at a later stage difficult.

Ultimately, these problems are often compounded by other factors, including residents’ low willingness to recycle, the growth of unauthorized dumps, and the inadequate capacities of certain landfills to handle long-term waste accumulation. Developing practical approaches to address MSW challenges under these limitations serves as a steppingstone toward resolving environmental issues in diverse urban areas beyond the Arctic. It could also reshape the environmental behaviour of municipal residents towards reducing, reusing, and recycling these materials.

A Role for Public-Private Partnerships and NGOs

Due to the substantial financial expenses involved, support for MSWM from national governments in the Arctic through public-private partnerships is vital for establishing infrastructure facilities.

One example is an eco-technopark built in Russia’s Murmansk region, which consists of a new landfill with a capacity of 250,000 tons per year and a waste segregation complex with a capacity of 180,000 tons per year. The construction of these facilities resulted from a concession agreement signed between the Murmansk regional government and JSC Waste Management, which called for an estimated investment of 1.86 billion roubles ($22 million) into the project.

In addition to larger infrastructure projects, national government support for small and medium enterprises that collect and process MSW (including plastics, cardboard, and tires) is also essential. Yet the ultimate economic efficacy of using public-private partnerships to address MSW problems remains case-specific. It depends upon various factors—including the presence of national legislation that creates various waste disposal ban regulations and acknowledges the unique climatic, weather, and geographical characteristics of MSWM in the urban Arctic.

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and citizens also have a role to play in implementing MSWM actions. Local NGOs significantly raise public awareness about the circular economy and the health and environmental risks associated with waste pollution and illegal dumping. More importantly, local NGOs and residents actively improve the quality of MSWM service by informing municipal officials and MSW companies via various communication channels (e.g., social media) of local problems with MSWM. Such communication also serves as a mechanism for keeping municipal officials and the private sector accountable for implementing MSW services under the relevant legislation. Non-state actors can also cooperate with private and public actors through joint projects, conferences, and awareness campaigns on waste-related topics.

Addressing pollution represents an immense challenge in the Arctic. However, ultimately, all these collaborative efforts between the private sector, public authorities, and civil society are essential to minimizing the impact of MSW on ecological degradation and contamination in the polar region. They lay the groundwork for the creation of a larger circular economy to divert waste from being dumped into the fragile Arctic environment.