Four events with different themes have been held at Lounapuisto in the first half of 2023. The events were organised at the Hehku Visitor Centre, which is located at the Lounavoima Waste-to-Energy plant. The Visitor Centre offers the perfect setting for hosting events. Part of building the Lounapuisto ecosystem, events are intended to acquaint all actors with the area and its activities. The objective of these events has been to reach companies and organisations, thus creating a safe and confidential atmosphere in which people can share their expertise and work together to develop area activities.
Aimed specifically at companies, the Circular Economy Day held in January 2023 opened the event series. During this event, attendees explored ways of acting in accordance with the principles of the circular economy and understanding the opportunities that the circular economy offers companies. Event attendees were provided with information on circular economy business models (Heikki Sorasahi, Ministry of the Environment) and EU regulations and funding related to the field (Miia Paananen, Turku-Southwest Finland European Office). They also had the opportunity to network with actors from other fields. Key legislative items related to the theme were the EU Green Deal, whose goal is carbon neutrality by 2050, and the Finnish Ministry of the Environment Strategic programme to promote a circular economy, which sets quantitative targets for the consumption of natural resources by 2035.
CH Bioforce and Finnfoam served as examples of the interaction between the circular economy and business. CH Bioforce uses surplus biomass to produce, for example, hemicellulose, cellulose and lignins, which can then be reused in cosmetics or textiles. Finnfoam recycles plastic-based thermal insulation into the raw materials for producing new insulation. An ecological, fruit-based solvent is used in the recycling process. The Circular Economy Centre was also on hand to talk about their operations, in which interaction between different actors and systemic change toward circular economy business models are emphasised. The Centre provides general services, which are open to public and private sector actors, and key area-specific services, along with the themes infrastructure, residential construction and industrial symbioses.
Recycled fertilisers are one potential area of development in the Salo region, where agriculture plays a major role. Indeed, it is known as the breadbasket of Southwest Finland. Due to the importance of this topic, a series of workshops was organised together with the Finnish Environment Institute’s Circwaste project, with regard to promoting industrial symbioses in Finland. The workshops were held in two parts. The first part was a webinar, which examined the current state and opportunities of recycled fertilisers in Southwest Finland. Experts from the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke) and ELY Centre, a farmer, a transport company owner and two recycled fertiliser manufacturers (Gasum and Soilfood) joined the webinar as speakers. Held in January of 2023, the second part was a workshop, which was attended by sector actors to plan how the Salo region could tackle the challenges of recycled fertiliser production.
The recycled fertiliser workshop focused on its lifecycle and the phases of its value chain. In general, it would be good to use surplus biomasses as inputs in the production of recycled fertiliser. The discussions focused on rationalisation of the entire fertiliser value chain and business opportunities so that all parties would benefit. Consideration was also given to whether farms could supply grass biomass as an input for the biogas plant, so that its operations would generate business and produce fertilisers for farmers. The attitudes held by different parties toward recycled fertilisers would probably move in a more positive direction if the concrete benefits offered by fertilisers could be proven.
Possibilities involving the use of straw were considered separately and, based on the discussions had, more information would be needed on, for example, what happens to fields and carbon sequestration if straw is removed after the harvest.
The Lounapuisto project and Salo IoT Campus collaborated on a Student Day held in February 2023. The aim of this collaboration was to kickstart cooperation between the UAS and Lounapuisto. Bachelor of Business Administration students on the Salo Campus were assigned tasks related to the Lounapuisto project. Many student groups chose the subject of communications, which generated some excellent ideas. Various types of social media were listed as communication channels in addition to traditional print media, TV and radio. It could be a good idea to produce short presentation videos or podcasts in raising the profile of the region. As a rule, increasing circular economy knowledge and presenting transparent, fact-based information on the environmentally-friendly operations of companies were considered important. Also in the future, various events could be organised in the region, ranging from small networking gatherings to full-scale conventions. Having an extensive cooperation network and cooperating with different parties (companies, higher education institutions, experts, etc.) were also considered to be extremely important. One student group chose as its theme the future of the Lounapuisto area, in which, among others, new circular economy-related services, learning and a focus on biogas were examined.
Held at the end of February, the Lounapuisto Day invited local companies to network and talk about their operations, much like the Topinpuisto Day held by waste management company Lounais-Suomen Jätehuolto Oy (LSJH) in Turku.
Lounapuisto Day started with a discussion on the opportunities for companies to locate in the area. Area companies Lounavoima Oy, Kone-Kostamo Oy and LSJH presented themselves at the event. Lounavoima makes use of waste that used to be disposed of in other nearby areas and serves as a development platform, participating in various experimental projects, such as piloting the seasonal storage of heat. Kone-Kostamo Oy excavates, crushes and refines stone in the area. The company is interested in the possibilities that the circular economy offers its own operations. LSJH has established an ambitious circular economy vision for the area, which aims to, among others, develop the local production of renewable electricity and hydrogen, sorting facility operations and conduct green energy trials.
In addition to this, development work in the Salo region through the Carbon Neutral Salo and Next Level projects were also discussed. The most important aspect of the Next Level project is supporting SMEs in gaining circular economy expertise and being flexible when it comes to change. The Carbon Neutral Salo project supports the city in achieving the climate and environmental programme targets.
QPower and Jyri Salminen of the University of Turku presented concrete solutions for climate change. In cooperation with LSJH and Lounavoima, QPower piloted landfill gas methanation in the area. The trial went well and revealed that it would probably be possible to convert the gas into a fuel with the technology used. Salminen’s presentation addressed the use of synthetic gas as a source for methanol. Hydrogen’s importance as a raw material for the future and the green transition is emphasised. Hydrogen can also be obtained from synthetic gas.
Next up on the agenda is an interesting morning coffee event at Lounapuisto on 16 May 2023, where you can listen to the speech made by Oskar Karlström, Associate Professor in Circular Economy at the University of Turku, and hear more about developments at Lounapuisto. You can register for the morning coffee event directly HERE. You can keep an eye out for other upcoming Lounapuisto events on the soon-to-be launched lounapuisto.fi website.
Through the circular economy and cooperation, we can build Finland’s future.
Noora Salmela, Turku UAS
Maarit Jaakola, Turku UAS
