Posted on: 7th Jun 2018
Andusia’s Response to the Environment Services Association Report on UK EfW Infrastructure
This week, the Environment Service Association (ESA) published a report; Energy for the Circular Economy: An Overview of Energy from Waste in the UK.
“There are strong signs that the UK Government now recognises both the urgent need for better resource productivity and stewardship, and the exciting opportunities it brings for jobs, innovation, growth and sustainable lifestyle, in short, for what has been known for years now as a more Circular Economy.”
Andusia is in full support of the initiative to develop the UK’s EfW infrastructure as this is a key focus for the company moving forward. Andusia and the ESA both see the urgency and requirement for an additional outlet for the waste produced across the country.
The UK still sends over 12m tonnes of waste to landfill but without further action, and as we begin to close landfill sites, we will find there is still 8.5m tonnes of non-recyclable waste without a home. We need to embrace such a change and develop a similar waste and energy policy to the rest of Europe.
There are concerns from objectors that increasing energy from waste facilities will reduce recycling levels, however other countries throughout Europe have proven that this is not the case, in fact, they seem to compliment each other. For example, Germany has the highest recycling rate in the world, but still incinerates 32% of its waste. Austria, The Netherlands, Switzerland and Belgium are all in a similar situation.
The ESA has set out some recommendations in order for the government to develop a full Resources & Waste Strategy for the future;
- POLICY: Develop an ambitious and robust plan for high-quality recycling
- SOLUTIONS: Address the residual waste capacity gap and provide long-term regulatory certainty
- ENABLERS: Enable CHP plants to help address the energy gap and ensure the planning and permitting regime does not unfairly disadvantage EfW.
It is important for the UK population to embrace Energy from Waste as a future waste solution for our country, and the UK government need to champion this to ensure it is achieved.
