Engineering value recovery from municipal solid waste

Abstract

As world population and industrialization increase, the consequence has been an increase in waste generation. In an attempt to curb this increase and recover value from the waste streams, the European Union (EU) and UK have introduced a wide range of legislation, focusing to a large extent on the biodegradable component of municipal solid waste (MSW). Although by no means the largest component of the total waste generated, it is a significant contributor to greenhouse gas emissions if left unmanaged. Strict targets for its diversion from landfill have been set and these will become increasingly challenging between 2010 and 2020. Despite the raft of legislation, this article demonstrates that the definitions and properties of MSW and its management strategies can vary considerably across the EU. Variations also exist across the UK, making it difficult to compare one region and its management strategies to another. The generic role of the materials recovery facility (MRF) is seen as crucial by the authors and this article examines its place across the management spectrum. Data are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of one such MRF operating in both ‘clean’ and ‘dirty’ modes. Its ability to recover product streams such as ferrous metal, aluminium, plastic containers, paper, and card is reported along with a brief economic assessment.