Impact
Impact
As we move towards a clean energy future, Waste to Energy has huge potential in helping Australia achieve its targets for renewable energy and the reduction of carbon emissions.
Resource Savings and Recovery greatly expanded. There are many examples where the process of waste to energy increases resource recovery. For example Metals which are missed during initial transformation of waste to fuel are recovered and recycled later in the process of energy creation.
Waste to Energy is a Net Greenhouse Gas Reducer. Methane is a greenhouse gas which is emitted from decomposing waste in landfills. It has more than 20 times the potency of carbon dioxide and is ranked as a dangerous contributor to climate change. Waste to energy facilities avoid the production of methane while producing almost ten times more electricity from each ton of waste compared to landfills. And, waste to energy facilities are the only solid waste disposal option with state-of-the-art air pollution control technology.
WTE facilities in the US account for approximately 20% of all renewable electricity generation. WTE facilities, unlike wind and solar, can provide baseload renewable electrical power (baseload meaning 24/7 availability).
Landfill usage and landfill expansions greatly reduced. Waste to energy facilities typically reduce waste volumes by 90%. Fewer and smaller landfills are needed to process ash, and this protects a valuable natural resource – land.
Trucking of waste long distances can be greatly reduced. With a waste to energy facility in a community, shorter trucking distances result in less air pollution, less truck traffic. Large regional landfills are often located long distances from the communities using them.
Tipping fees remain in the community where the waste is generated. Large regional landfills are usually privately owned, and their revenues often do not remain in the communities generating the waste. Waste to energy facility revenues largely remain in the community. Tipping fees at regional landfills are based on levels of competition from other regional landfills and may not be related to the cost of disposal. Because of long term contracts and a fixed debt repayment structure, waste to energy facilities offer stable tipping fees for municipal waste. Large regional landfills, usually privately owned, compete with other landfills for waste and the tipping fees can be unpredictable.
The economy of the community is enhanced. According to the Energy Recovery Council based in the US, the average waste to energy facility is responsible for the creation of 58 full time jobs. Generally, these are salaried, skilled positions with relatively high pay. These jobs have at least a 40-year projected life.