Waste has always appeared in our daily lives taking many forms – food, plastic, medical, and hazardous waste are such examples. It has clogged up oceans, reduced space, and polluted lands which not only affects us but also a large variety of different animals. 2.01 billion tons of waste is generated every year with no signs of decrease (Trends in Solid), which is why we must learn to reuse our waste or even convert it to something we all need: energy. It is one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals to provide clean and affordable energy to all (SDG#7), so methods have been developed to generate more accessible energy, and more importantly, save the environment. Many countries have spent years developing ways to repurpose waste, utilizing it to produce energy; but there have also been many concerns as to the benefits and costs of these systems, with renewable energy methods such as solar, geothermal, and wind power still being the most environmentally friendly.
Waste Repurpose in Japan
Japan aims to reduce waste through a delicate waste repurpose system for many reasons. Not only do Japanese people believe in Mottainai – the practice of treasuring resources to use them for extended periods of time, but waste can also cause climate change when decomposed food waste produces methane, which is “a greenhouse gas even more potent than carbon dioxide”. (Fight Climate Change).
According to the Ministry of Environment, in 1960, Japan began disposing of garbage by incineration, the process of burning trash at elevated temperatures, and by 2009 there were 1243 incineration facilities located in Japan, each using varying methods of incineration such as stoker furnaces, fluidized bed furnaces, and gasification fusion resource furnaces to enable ash recycling. They have also developed countermeasure technologies to prevent the spread of Sox (sulfur oxide), HC1 (hydrogen chloride), NOx (nitrogen oxide), smoke, and dioxin produced by these facilities, making it both safe and effective. (Solid Waste Management). Through incineration, Japan could effectively reduce landfills, soil contamination, water contamination, and air pollution, levering the quality of life for its citizens and the world.
Ministry of Environment further states that PET (polyester) bottle recycling technology has also been developed in Japan, using unwanted bottles, food trays, and cans to create a variety of textile products, high-grade PET bottles could even be remade into carpets! Food corporations also take part by combining the material recycling method and chemical recycling method to recreate PET bottles. The material recycling method is when bottles are dissolved under high temperatures and then filtered to produce plastic resin, which would be used in half of the new PET bottles along with chemically recycled material, this results in 100% recycled PET bottles for beverages again. This method has led to a 90% decrease in the usage of petroleum-derived resources, namely gasoline, and reduced CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions by 60%. (Solid Waste Management). In conclusion, waste repurpose such as ash and PET recycling is an adequate course of action to take in minimizing pollution and junk on earth.
Pros and Cons of Waste-to-energy
Along with waste repurposing, waste-to-energy systems have been developed to reduce waste while increasing energy production. The non-profit organization Energy Saving Trust from England has stated that the waste-to-energy system can operate in many ways, which include combustion, gasification, pyrolysis, anaerobic digestion, and landfill gas recovery; however, the level of environmental benefits is dependent on the “efficiency of the plant turning waste into energy, and the proportion of waste biodegradable”. (Generating Energy).
Combustion is the process of confining and controlled burning of solid waste destined for landfills to reduce volume and recover energy, it is like incineration, and uses the heat generated while burning waste to vaporize water into steam, this steam can then be sent to the turbine generator to produce energy. (Energy Recovery). Gasification is when garbage is combined with oxygen or steam to produce synthesized gas which can then be made into useful products such as transport fuels, fertilizers, and electricity. (Generating Energy). Pyrolysis requires a process similar to combustion but in lower temperatures as there is no oxygen or inert gases, which means it has lower emissions of some air pollutants associated with combustion. (Generating Energy). Anaerobic digestion generates energy from organic waste such as food and animal products through the usage of an oxygen-free tank to break the material down into biogas and fertilizer.
While these are all fantastic ways to reduce waste and avoid 2-3 gigatons of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 through providing an alternative to fossil fuels, the social, environmental, and financial costs are far too great. (Waste-To-Energy). “Environmental concerns focus on the fear that incinerators emit toxic air pollutants and produce hazardous residues”, (Arrandale), so unless these emissions could be reduced to nothing, waste-to-energy would never be fully environmentally friendly. The costs are also extremely high; the only way a government would get money to repay the amount needed to build the waste-to-energy equipment is by selling the energy to customers and tipping fees for waste disposal. (Arrandale).
The Best Alternative
Due to the fact that waste-to-energy systems aren’t especially viable, countries have pushed for the advancement of renewable “green” energy. The reason “green” energy methods are the best option is their never-ending supply and optimization for the environment, it harnesses nature to effectively produce energy without downsides such as CO2 being produced into the atmosphere. EnergyX, a company pushing sustainable energy, says that there are five main types of renewable energy: solar, hydro, geothermal, wind, and bioenergy. (The 5 Main Types).
Solar energy is sunlight converted into energy through the usage of photovoltaic panels, it is an easy and cheap way to produce electricity, therefore many countries, like China, have been implementing large-scale solar projects. (The 5 Main Types). The aviation industry has also begun to switch to using solar energy to reduce its carbon footprint. Hydro energy is produced by harnessing water flowing through generators in dams such as the Hoover in Arizona, USA. Hydropower is responsible for 16% of total global energy production and is currently the world’s largest source of sustainable energy, it can also come from waves or tidal power. (The 5 Main Types). Hydroelectricity’s wide range of sources allows it the ability to be used everywhere, it can store energy through pumped storage facilities, providing both alternative energy and storage options. (The 5 Main Types). Geothermal energy refers to the use of heat generated naturally within the earth and carried to the surface in the form of steam, which power plants generate electricity from via drilled wells. (The 5 Main Types). The energy comes from the core, which means it is a reliable form of sustainable energy for a range of nations globally but requires more infrastructure to ensure power generation.
On report of the organization Inspire Clean Energy, wind energy is generated when turbines spin due to naturally occurring wind, along with solar they are considered the most sustainable as turbines and solar panels can be used everywhere in the world without damaging the natural landscape. (What Is Sustainable). Bioenergy is derived from a vast array of biological materials such as food waste or wood pellets and comes in many shapes and forms. Combustion of biological materials to provide energy, and liquid biofuels to power vehicles are also examples of bioenergy, which allows versatility to provide for different energy needs. (The 5 Main Types).
All renewable energy methods come without environmental drawbacks and ensure sustainability for future generations, hence their superiority against the waste-to-energy systems. However, the main factor affecting the production of renewable energy is the cost, these methods have not been refined enough for them to be cheaper than fossil fuels, but soon enough through technological advancements there would be many changes to the pricing.
Conclusion
In short, while waste-to-energy seems to be a great idea, it comes with costs that outweigh the benefits, which is why the best method is to resort to sustainable energy methods to replace fossil fuels. However, waste repurposing by Japan has also proved to be a fruitful alternative to waste-to-energy. Waste is a massive problem that can drastically affect the welfare of everyday citizens, and energy such as electricity still is not accessible to everyone all around the world. As cost is the main downside to sustainable energy sources, people and companies must learn to repurpose waste into helpful items, or large-scale industrial waste into the infrastructure needed to generate renewable energy. Everyone can do their part to save the environment with waste repurposing and a focus on clean energy!
Works Cited
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