“Do you incinerate the food waste?” “No!”
This is one of the most common questions we receive at Wasatch Resource Recovery and one that we wanted to dive into a bit more!
Incineration was one of the most common ways to keep solid waste out of landfills in the United States and much of the world 20 to 30 years ago. It is still used both here and abroad but the dial has been moving towards more renewable options for decades.
Wasatch Resource Recovery’s goal is to reduce waste headed to the landfill. Because anaerobic digesters are similar to our stomachs, we don’t accept materials that are hard to break down (plastics, metals, branches, single use disposables, etc.) – WRR supports recycling, composting and reusables. Incinerators generally accept all waste in one stream, which sounds ideal, but actually discourages people from recycling, composting or rethinking their purchases.
It is important to understand the long term benefits of rethinking our waste streams and there are key differences (and a few similarities) between anaerobic digestion and incineration.
Anaerobic Digestion |
Incineration |
|
Is this a closed loop system? |
YES |
NO |
Is the end product renewable? |
YES |
NO |
Is waste to the landfill reduced? |
YES |
YES |
What is released into the atmosphere? |
Nothing |
Greenhouse gases such as CO2 and methane |
What kind of energy is generated? |
Biomethane – a renewable natural gas |
Electricity for heating |
What byproducts are generated? |
|
|
The best way to keep waste out of the landfill is to reduce the waste at the source, followed by feeding people who are hungry, animals who are hungry and then finally, sending waste to an anaerobic digester! We are thrilled to be at the forefront of renewable energy projects here in Utah and across the country.
For more information check out our website. If your business is interested in diverting organic waste to WRR please email us at info@wasatchresourcerecovery.com or give us a call at 801-266-9161.
Sources: https://www.london.gov.uk/sites/default/files/waste-energy_from_waste_feb15.pdf https://www.c40knowledgehub.org/s/article/Why-solid-waste-incineration-is-not-the-answer-to-your-city-s-waste-problem?language=en_US https://www.giz.de/en/downloads/GIZ_WasteToEnergy_Guidelines_2017.pdf https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1876610217308883 https://cleantechnica.com/2018/12/17/report-waste-incineration-a-dirty-secret-in-how-states-define-renewable-energy/ https://www.ecocycle.org/files/pdfs/best_option_for_disposing_of_leftovers_on_the_way_to_Zero_Waste_press_release.pdf https://www.ecocycle.org/files/pdfs/WTE_wrong_for_environment_economy_community_by_Eco-Cycle.pdf https://ilsr.org/waste-incineration-renewable-energy/ https://www.no-burn.org/wp-content/uploads/Pollution-Health_final-Nov-14-2019.pdf
