Page 50 - European Energy Innovation - Spring 2017 publication

50 Spring 2017 European Energy Innovation

WASTE MANAGEMENT

A conveyor belt carrying RDF as it travels away from a magnet materials from previously
landfilled wastes through the
deployment of enhanced
landfill mining [ELFM]. This is an
emerging field which is being
developed rapidly through
Cranfield University and fellow
members of the European
Enhanced Landfill Mining
Consortium [EURELCO]. Cranfield,
through a Horizon 2020-funded
project SMART GROUND, are
also seeking to understand the
secondary raw material potential
of EU landfill sites. ATT processes
have previously been investigated
by members of EURELCO as a
means of converting excavated
wastes into valuable products.
Through ELFM valuable
materials can be recovered, the
environmental burden of legacy
landfill sites is removed and land
is remediated. ATT processes
have a significant role to play in
ELFM and secondary raw material
recovery from our wastes.

Looking ahead there are
examples globally which suggest
that energy from waste has a firm
place in waste management. In
China there are plans to develop
300 new EfW facilities in the
next 3 years, one of which will
be the world’s largest facility,
located in Shenzhen processing a
staggering 5,000 tonnes per day.
In terms of large-scale projects,
it appears that conventional
combustion processes, largely
incorporating the well-established
moving grate technology, will
continue to be constructed. ATT,
however, shouldn’t be written off;
we have seen evidence that large-
scale facilities are prone to failure,
but smaller town-scale facilities
may still have a place in ELFM
and an overall sustainable waste
management system. ●

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