New report addresses problem of waste

Although, it is evident that NO treatment method can render the disposal of the volume and content of today’s waste streams sustainable, it is equally clear that some technologies have a much lower ‘sustainability footprint’ than others. These are the conclusions of a new report: Thermal Treatment of Waste and Sustainability: An Evaluation Using The Natural Step Framework, published by The Natural Step. Recent studies such as the UK government Strategy Unit’s Waste Not, Want Not highlight the importance of addressing waste, energy and resource issues on a much more interconnected basis. In undertaking this study, The Natural Step and its partners claims they are motivated purely from a sustainability perspective, which they also believe is the connecting framework of most value in informing long-term government policy. The study forms one of The Natural Step’s 2020 Vision series of consensus-building projects, and focuses on the whole resource flow system of which thermal treatment of waste is but one ‘downstream’ component. The report explores the sustainability implications of various thermal treatment technologies for waste handling, including basic ‘mass burn’ incineration as well as more advanced methods, compared to the ‘benchmarks’ of landfill and mechanical biological treatment (MBT). On the basis of a vision of full sustainability developed during the project, the study identifies seven key sustainability challenges. TS More information from The Natural Step, 9 IMPERIAL SQUARE, CHELTENHAM, GL50 1QB TEL: 01242 262744 FAX: 01242 757992 The Natural Step