| | DECEMBER 20228Chris Hudson, Associate Waste Management Consultant, StantecByIn the UK, nearly 15 million tonnes of residual waste are turned into around 8.6 Terawatts-per-hour (TWh) of electricity every year. This amount of energy registers at just under 3% of our total generation capacity. The process also releases nearly 10 million tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. If we are serious about reaching net zero, we need to cut these carbon emissions in the waste sector. Decarbonisation should certainly focus on reducing the amount of residual waste as well as the amount of fossil carbon through removing plastics for recycling. But the Environmental Services Association (ESA) and individual waste management companies have identified the installation of carbon capture on Energy from Waste (EfW) facilities as an essential component in the fight.The barriers to the uptake of carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS)can be split into three main challenges: Technology, cost and markets. To date, we don't have any carbon capture plants developed on EfWs in the UK--and only limited examples overseas--because of these barriers.Adapting the TechnologyThe technology needed for capturing carbon is well established in the oil and gas sector, but we need to adapt it for installation on EfWs. This can be achieved with a good understanding of the nature of the flue gasses and the engineering installation requirements. And while the market for equipment is still emerging, there are other options available. These range from modular predesigned systems to fully bespoke stick-built construction methods. Installing CCUS processing on individual facilities is more of a technically challenging hurdle to ensure that tapping off and reinjecting gases doesn't affect the EfW process. This process amendment requires careful planning and added facility downtime to complete. CLEANER ENERGY FROM WASTEIN MY OPINION
< Page 7 | Page 9 >