Wintermagic in Old Porvoo, Red Shore Houses © Visit Porvoo
Porvoo is the second oldest city in Finland, established in the 14th century on a riverbank. Porvoo developed and prospered as a place for trade. It is also the center of the eastern metropolitan area. The city has a diverse range of public and commercial services. One-third of the population speaks Swedish as their first language. The milestone of 50,000 residents was passed in July 2015.
What has already been done in Porvoo to promote the circular economy?
This year, the City of Porvoo became the first municipality in Finland to begin using the Neste MY diesel fuel, which is made of 100% waste and surplus materials, across its entire diesel fleet. The free summer bus Rinkeli also runs on Neste MY.
The overarching goal of the Pobi (Porvoo Kilpilahti evolving into a biobusiness park) project is to form a shared understanding, vision and plan between businesses of the Kilpilahti industrial area and some Finnish companies developing the value chains of the bioeconomy and circular economy on how to develop the Porvoo region into a world-class cluster of bioindustry. At the same time, these efforts lay the groundwork for SMEs that serve the petrochemical and bioproduct industries in Kilpilahti.
The plans and construction of the infrastructure and sites in the energy-efficient Skaftkärr residential area have improved material efficiency in earthwork by establishing a preparation and intermediate storage area for soil and rock materials. This conserves virgin rock material, reduces the need to build landfills and provides cost savings.
Goals as a pioneering municipality
Porvoo has been a forerunner in the production and utilization of carbon-neutral energy in the community structure. Through the Circwaste project, we are also looking to gain information and support for our development efforts at other levels of the circular economy.
More information