Some scientists predict that if we stay on our current course we will irreversibly damage our planet’s environment within the next 30 years.  Although there are many different actions that nations can take to help slow the effects of global warming, Covanta offers a solution that can have a direct positive impact beginning today.

What causes climate change

When greenhouse gases (GHG) such as methane, carbon dioxide, and nitrous oxide are released into the earth’s atmosphere, they trap infrared radiation from sunlight.  This is stored as heat in the atmosphere and can be tied to the increase in the average temperature of the Earth.

Greenhouse gas

Greenhouse gas emissions are primarily linked to energy consumption, such as the combustion of fossil fuels for energy generation and transportation. Energy-related carbon dioxide emissions, resulting from petroleum, coal and natural gas, represent 82% of total U.S. human-made greenhouse gas emissions.

Methane is another greenhouse gas, and at more than 20 times the potency of carbon dioxide, methane is ranked as a dangerous contributor to global warming.  The largest source of methane emissions in the United States is landfills, but methane is also emitted from coal mines, oil and gas operations, and agriculture.  Approximately 18% of global warming is due to methane emissions in the atmosphere.  Methane emissions from U.S. landfills pose a significant danger because our increasing trash generation sends more municipal solid waste (MSW) to landfills each year.

Preventing climate change with Energy-from-Waste

Energy-from-Waste facilities avoid the production of methane while producing significantly more electricity from each ton of waste compared to landfills. On average, EfW produces 520 kWh from a ton of waste and only 20 kWh per ton comes from landfills. This energy production from EfW offsets greenhouse gases from fossil fuel electrical production.

It is estimated that for every ton of trash combusted in modern Energy-from-Waste plants, nearly one ton less of carbon dioxide equivalent is released into the air due to avoided methane from land disposal, fossil fuel power generation, and metals productions. Using the Environmental Protection Agency model, it can be estimated that Energy-from-Waste facilities in the U. S. annually avoids the release of 30 million metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

The Global Roundtable on Climate Change (GROCC) supports the use of Energy-from-Waste to help migitage global warming.  GROCC released its report, “The Path to Global Sustainability” in February of 2007.  GROCC brings together over 85 high-level, critical stakeholders from all regions of the world to discuss and explore areas of potential consensus critical to shaping sound public policies on climate change.  The report found that, “Energy efficiency must play an important role in these strategies, but long-term success will require a concerted effort to de-carbonize the global energy system.” 

One strategy endorsed by the report is to “de-carbonize” the electric power generation industry by shifting to non-fossil fuel based energy sources, specifically including energy-from-waste.  This follows the Energy Policy Act of 2005 which confirmed energy-from-waste was renewable.  The GROCC sustainability statement also recommends “efforts to reduce global emissions of methane from landfills should be expanded, including increased use of waste-to-energy facilities where appropriate and cost effective.” This endorsement supports Covanta’s view that waste-to-energy should be counted as a GHG offset, particularly since the methane produced from landfilling has far greater global warming impact than carbon dioxide.