The Government in Finland is proposing to extend waste taxation to the industry's own landfill sites and to hike the level of taxes substantially. These amendments to the Waste Tax Act would impose an additional cost burden of some 40 million Euros per year on the forest industry, if the EU does not grant the exemptions, which are being sought. It is important to receive an exemption for de-inking sludge, which is created as part of the paper recycling process, the Forest Industry Federation writes in a press release. Such an exemption has been granted with respect to levies imposed under the current Waste Tax Act.Sweden, for example, has granted a tax exemption for de-inking sludge on environmental grounds.The forest industry in Finland has halved the amount of landfill waste it produces through voluntary measures implemented over the previous decade. All waste fractions that are technically and economically utilizable are either recycled or used in energy generation.