The recycling crisis facing Australia in the wake of China’s crackdown on accepting foreign waste has sparked calls for action on the future of waste in Queensland.
Local councils and the Queensland Government are looking at investing in innovative technologies to reduce our reliance on landfill, as well as transform our waste into useable products like electricity and biofuels.
So how much do we know about these zero waste to landfill solutions? Here’s five things that may surprise you.
- Energy from waste can be produced using several very different technologies. It need not be burned. Examples include anaerobic digestion, which mimics the decay process that already occurs in landfills under controlled conditions (think your backyard compost on a massive scale) and mechanically processing waste to produce a fuel which can be used for energy generation.
- It’s also very safe. A recent feasibility report on investment in an energy from waste industry in Queensland identified several options that that are clean, safe and proven.
- Waste to energy solutions are in operation across the globe. In Florida, a waste-to-energy plant has cut landfill by 90%. In Paris, the Isseane waste to energy facility provides heating to 80,000 households and powers itself with electricity.
- Queensland councils have committed to a ‘zero waste to landfill’ target by 2028 for Queensland, underpinned by nation-leading Waste to Energy solutions. Only 48% of waste in Queensland is recovered – so there is room for growth.
- The public supports these solutions. A report on community attitudes in Queensland revealed that a large majority (83%) of residents support a Zero Waste goal. Three quarters (75%) of residents’ support Waste to Energy technology investment and initiatives.
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