Incineration drive begins with plastics sector support

The plastics industry and some of the UK's largest waste management companies have joined forces to launch a new alliance today (February 15) calling on the government to take the lead in encouraging a major increase in energy-from-waste incineration.

To mark its launch, the Energy from Waste UK group has issued a joint statement claiming that the technology offers a safe, cost-effective way for the UK to meet its landfill diversion and energy needs, while also fitting in with the localism agenda and complementing high levels of recycling.

The statement, which also counts academics and consultants among its 14 signatories, says: “Energy from waste provides us with an opportunity for a waste solution and a local source of energy rolled into one.

“While we welcome the coalition government's focus on expanding anaerobic digestion, it can only address a portion of the waste stream and is not sufficient on its own.”

The group label the technology a “modern and environmentally sound solution” to dealing with residual waste and claims it will help to develop an infrastructure that is integrated, reliable, secure and resilient as well as and helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

And, in terms of what it wants from the government, they say: “Following a decade of delayed projects and a lack of clear policy, the coalition government has an opportunity to show clear leadership in declaring its support for the full potential of energy from waste.”

Membership

The group's membership features three leading figures in the plastics industry, most notably Peter Davis, director general of the British Plastics Federation (BPF), who is understood to be leading the project.

The BPF and two other signatories, Plastics Europe and the Packaging & Films Association, already strongly advocate EfW incineration as a way to utilise the high calorific value of plastics under the auspices of the Plastics 2020 Challenge campaign.

It also includes members from most of the major UK waste companies involved in the development of large-scale energy-from-waste incinerators, including Covanta Energy, SITA UK, Veolia and Waste Recycling Group, as well as the Confederation of European Waste-to-Energy Plants.

Many of these companies and associations are clients of the waste consultancy PPS Group, which is organising the group.

However, notable absentees from the list of signatories include the UK's waste industry trade body, the Environmental Services Association, the UK industry's professional body, the Chartered Institution of Waste Management, and the European waste sector body FEAD.

Arguments

The group's five key arguments in favour of EfW incineration include claiming that it can help to renew the UK's “ageing” energy infrastructure by providing over 10% of future UK electricity generating capacity, as well as large amounts of heat, in a reliable, secure, sustainable and flexible way.

It also says it is a “cost-effective” option, which will keep energy price rises down as well as helping councils and businesses to avoid paying rising rates of landfill tax, while providing “low-cost” access to heat and power for homes.

At the same time, the group believes the technology can contribute to the coalition government's ‘localism' agenda, asserting that “energy from waste provides a local waste and local energy solution for local communities”.

The signatories also claim that EfW is “compatible” with recycling, working alongside it to provide a way to recover additional value from the material that remains after cost-effective recycling.

And, they claim that it is not harmful to the environment or public health, highlighting Health Protection Agency statements claiming that modern, well-managed plants do not pose a significant threat to health (see letsrecycle.com story).

Ministerial meetings

At a launch event for the joint-statement, Nick Sutcliffe, a director at consultancy PPS, which is administering the group's work, revealed that a delegation from the group would be meeting with the waste and recycling minister, Lord Henley, on March 29.

Commenting on this, Peter Davis, director general of the British Plastics Federation, told letsrecycle.com that the first focus of the group would be to look to influence the outcome of the review of England's waste policy, the results of which are set to be published in May 2011.

However, he also revealed that he was also set to meet with energy minister Charles Hendry in the next few weeks to press the group's case, explaining: “Energy policy is very important to us. My industry is very worried about where energy is going to come from in the future.”

The group is also developing its website, to outline its arguments to members of the public, as well as potentially providing more in-depth information of the various energy-from-waste technologies available. The website is expected to be built up over the next six to 12 months.

Mr Davis said that, in particular, he hoped government would be similarly outspoken in its support of EfW as it had been for anaerobic digestion. “Ideally we would like that to happen,” Mr Davis said. “Government has made a big thing of AD but it's fairly limited so we would like it to go broader.”

And, he called on government to tackle the “information deficit” that he said existed around energy-from-waste.

The group today gained another, as-yet-unnamed, supporter, and is also seeking support from other materials sectors.

Mr Davis said it was also considering whether to write to specific local authorities who “need to think” about energy-from-waste.

This came as the MP for Southampton Test, Alan Whitehead, told today's launch there was a particular issue caused by the size of EfW proposals meaning they were falling between the government's plans to give more ministerial control over large infrastructure planning decisions and to give local communities more say on small proposals.

Friends of the Earth

Reaction to today's launch came from Julian Kirby, waste campaigner for the environmental group Friends of the Earth. Mr Kirby told letsrecycle.com that he was “struck by the nerve” of the group's arguments.

In particular, he took issue with the group's claim that EfW incineration is a low carbon source of energy and claimed their arguments had not taken into account the need to reduce carbon emissions.

Instead, he claimed that there was evidence that the best option for some non-recyclable plastics was to landfill them rather than recover energy from them, arguing that “because mixed plastics have such high carbon content that energy you'd put onto the grid is going to displace lower carbon energy”.

He said this could create particular issues as the government looked to reduce the carbon intensity of energy generation by 10 times current levels by 2030, in line with goals set recently by the independent Committee on Climate Change.

“It just doesn't fit with the maths of climate change and what government has committed to do under the Committee on Climate Change,” he claimed.