Gate Fee Research Articles

Downcycling versus recycling of construction and demolition waste: Combining LCA and LCC to support sustainable policy making

Urgent solutions are needed in Europe to deal with construction and demolition waste (CDW). EU policy has contributed to significantly reducing the amount of CDW going to landfill, but most of the effort has been put in downcycling practices. Therefore, further policies are needed to stimulate high-quality recycling of CDW.The present paper presents a combined life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle costing (LCC) methodologies to analyse the environmental and the economic drivers in four alternative CDW end-of-life scenarios in the region of Flanders, in Belgium. The four analysed alternatives are (i) landfilling, (ii) downcycling, (iii) advanced recycling and (iv) recycling after selective demolition.LCA results show that landiflling is the scenario having the highest environmental impacts in terms of person equivalent (PE), followed by downcycling and recycling (-36%) and recycling after selective demolition (−59%). The decrease in environmental impacts is mostly due to the avoided landfilling of CDW and the recovery of materials from selective demolition. LCC results indicate that landfilling is the scenario bearing the highest total economic costs. This is due to the high landfill tax in Flanders. The recycling after selective demolition bears the second highest cost.The increase of high-quality CDW recycling can significantly reduce the overall environmental impact of the system. Implementing a high landfill tax, increasing the gate fee to the recycling plant, and boosting the sales price of recycled aggregates are the most effective drivers to facilitate a transition towards a more sustainable CDW management system.The paper demonstrates that the combined LCA and LCC results can highlight the environmental and economic drivers in CDW management. The results of the combined analysis can help policymakers to promote the aspects contributing to sustainability and to limit the ones creating a barrier.

ECONOMIC EVALUATION OF A HYDROTHERMAL LIQUEFACTION PROCESS

Wet waste streams include a wide variety of products such as food processing residues, sewage sludge, but also the organic fraction of municipal solid waste. Hydrothermal liquefaction is a thermochemical conversion in hot compressed water that produces a hydrophobic product. This paper gives presents how hydrothermal liquefaction can produce a biocrude or a heavy fuel oil from blackcurrant pomace, grape marc and sewage sludge. The paper presents experimental results as well as a technical and economic evaluation of the process. The results from hydrothermal liquefaction depend on the resource. Typical biocrude yield is 50% of the dry resource while bio-oil yield can be up to 25%. High ash resources are however less interesting for this technology. The production costs are high compared to their fossil counterparts but gate fees in the order of 50 to 130 € tonne-1 could ensure economic competitiveness compared to fossil fuels.​

An Investigation into the Fertilizer Potential of Slaughterhouse Cattle Paunch

Abstract. In Australia, recycling of paunch waste to farmland has been suggested as a cost-effective and practicable environmental option, but little is known about its agronomic value. Experimental work was undertaken to assess potential risks due to weed seed contamination, determine the agronomic response of ryegrass ( L.) to soil incorporation of paunch, and investigate short-term greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Five types of paunch with compost ages between 2 and 16 weeks were compared with urea (46% N) and applied at field equivalent rates of 0 (control), 150, and 300 kg ha-1 N. The risk of weed contamination from paunch applied to soil appeared to be negligible; however, techniques that enable seed viability to be determined may be required to fully discard such risk. Average dry matter yield with paunch was ~30% higher than untreated grass, but ~35% lower than with urea. Dry matter yield in paunch-treated grass was between 2500 and 3250 kg ha-1 over five cuts conducted at 25-day intervals. Paunch N responses were between 1.12 and 3.25 kg DM kg-1 N depending on compost age, but lower than with urea N (~6.5 kg DM kg-1 N). Nitrogen use efficiency of paunch ranged between 3% and 20%, compared to about 35% with urea. Nitrogen fertilizer replacement value (NFRV) of paunch was highest in the 6-week-old compost (~60%) and ranged between 20% and 55% across all other organic materials. Short-term N2O emissions were similar (p > 0.05) with both mineral and organic amendments; however, CH4 emissions were higher (p < 0.05) from paunch compared with urea-treated soil. Overall, there appears to be potential for paunch-derived products to be used as a source of C and nutrients in crop production. Industry quality specifications for compost are available, but they need to be expanded to incorporate guidelines relevant to paunch. There is a requirement for the value proposition to industry to be determined, including reduced cost of paunch disposal via gate fees. Keywords: Byproducts, Composting, Fertilizer replacement value, Nutrient recovery, Nutrient use efficiency, Recycling of abattoir-derived waste.

SANITARY LANDFILL COSTS FROM DESIGN TO AFTERCARE: CRITERIA FOR DEFINING UNIT COST

Landfill costs have been estimated for an average case that represents a reference landfill model for Northern Italy. This case is based on the analysis of more than 15 landfill projects per the requirements of the Italian legislation. These projects were based on the suggestions of the national landfill guidelines and best practices. Costs have been analysed through the four phases of the landfill lifetime (i.e.: design and authorization, construction, operation, and aftercare) and expressed per unit of waste volume in order to define the “landfill gate fee” that represents a unit payment for the whole landfill life cycle service. The estimated value, equal to 86.04 €/m3, is in line with the analysed references and it is mainly attributed to the costs of leachate disposal, the staff, and raw materials for liner construction. However, other factors such as localization, climatic conditions, waste quality, landfill geometry, operative procedures, and financial and legal aspects can significantly influence the landfill gate fee. Finally, the results of this study, based on a large data analysis, represent a starting point for a comparative economic analysis to support political and technical decisions.

An evaluation of anaerobic co-digestion implementation on New York State dairy farms using an environmental and economic life-cycle framework

Anaerobic digestion systems on dairy farms in New York State rely on gate-fee revenues from co-digestion to ensure economic viability. Yet, because gate fees are paid on a volumetric (or weight) basis, farmers have been compelled to accept large waste volumes. When these wastes are co-digested at rates exceeding the design capacity of the digester, potentially significant technical, environmental, and economic consequences may arise. To better understand these trade-offs, we performed a combined environmental life-cycle and economic assessment with uncertainty analysis. We used the Anaerobic Digestion Model #1 to simulate the co-digestion process for 10 potential co-substrates that were hypothetically mixed with dairy manure throughout a range of loading rates. These simulation results demonstrated the need to include a robust anaerobic digestion model to capture complex process dynamics and loading limits. Results also showed that while higher loading rates were more economically favorable, they caused considerable reductions in the degree of waste stabilization during the digestion process, which dramatically increased downstream methane emissions (e.g., >450%) on the farm compared to manure-only digestion. Regardless, most co-digestion scenarios led to a net reduction in total life-cycle emissions compared to manure only and not digesting the co-substrate due mainly to greater electric power production and synthetic fertilizer replacement. Economically, gate-fee revenue was the most important contributor to profitability, substantially outweighing the revenue from electric power production, while also compensating for the increased handling costs of the added waste volume. Ultimately, the model clearly demonstrated the important environmental and economic implications arising from current anaerobic digestion implementation practices and policy in New York State. In addition, the model highlighted key stages in the system life-cycle, which was used to instruct and recommend immediately actionable policy changes.

Electric power generation from municipal solid waste: A techno-economical assessment under different scenarios in Iran

Due to the increasing rate of municipal waste generation, Waste-to-Energy technologies for waste management have been noticed in the last two decades. The objective of the present study was to investigate and review the sensitivity analysis of different scenarios for choosing an effective and efficient technology using a gasification or incineration system from municipal solid waste in Iran. The challenge was to find the best suitable scenario according to economic aspects. For this purpose, factors of the costs of waste disposal (gate fee) and electricity power purchase agreement in the economic recovery plan for the two technologies (waste gasification and incineration) were evaluated. The investigation data analysis showed significant difference between gasification and incineration technologies. Due to the higher efficiency of gasification technology compared to incineration technology, scenarios of energy recovery from waste by gasification technology, taking into account the effect of gate fee or electricity power purchase agreement (scenario 5 and 6) were the best scenario among the evaluated scenarios. The calculation indicates that the most appropriate of payback periods for gasification technology 4.17 and 4.06 years in the gate fee of US$ 0.126 and electricity power purchase agreement of US$ 0.276, respectively.

Industrial Wastes and By‐products as Alternative Fuels in Cement Plants: Evaluation of an Industrial Symbiosis Option

SummaryA ravenous fuel consumer, the cement industry may substitute fossil fuels by industrial wastes and by‐products, identifying the industry as a key example of industrial symbiosis (IS). Benefits from industrial waste alternative fuels (IWAFs) include safe disposal, fossil fuel cost savings, gate fees, and greenhouse gas credits. Poor IWAFs, (high moisture, ash and halogen content) bring higher gate fees, but lessen clinker production. Thermal rating and blower capacity constraints should be satisfied in such a case study of IS. Cement plants must comply with potentially tighter emission limits, compared to fossil fuel utilization, despite higher pollutant precursors in IWAFs. Emissions’ compliance, operational, and production implications are a few among several challenges when assessing multiple IWAF valorization as a symbiotic option from a systems’ perspective. A novel method is proposed to quantitatively assess critical trade‐offs. Species and energy transformations convey a rigorous picture of clinker level, kiln flue gas, and offgas volumes and lay the groundwork for screening, a priori selection, and process tuning. Necessary and sufficient compliance conditions and safety margins are presented in terms of process parameters and actual emissions’ data. Main challenges posed by high flue gas, high offgas volumes, high moisture, low heating value, increased nitrogen oxides emissions, and high halogen and metal content are quantified. As demonstrated in a case study of an actual 1.5 × 106 tonnes per annum clinker plant in this paper, concurrent use of several IWAFs may increase clinker production, while satisfying operational constraints and maintaining compliance. The method may serve for devising IWAF preparation, or tuning mechanisms expanding IWAF valorization.

Stochastic modelling of the economic viability of on-farm co-digestion of pig manure and food waste in Ireland

The majority of studies analysing the economic potential of biogas systems utilise deterministic models to assess the viability of a system using fixed inputs. However, changes in market conditions can significantly affect the viability of biogas plants, and need to be accounted for. This study assessed the economic potential of undertaking on-farm anaerobic co-digestion of food waste (FW) and pig manure (PM) using both deterministic and stochastic modelling approaches. The financial viability of three co-digestion plants sized to treat PM generated from 521, 2607 and 5214 sow integrated units was assessed. Under current market conditions the largest co-digestion scenario modelled was found to be unviable. Stochastic modelling of four key input variables (FW availability, renewable electricity tariff, gate fees and digestate disposal costs) was undertaken to assess the sensitivity of project viability to changes in market conditions. Due to the high likelihood of accessing sufficient FW, the smallest co-digestion scenario was found to be the least sensitive to any future changes in market conditions. Due to its potential to treat greater amounts of FW than the smallest scenario, a co-digestion plant designed for a 2607 sow farm had the highest revenue generating potential under optimal market conditions; however, it was more sensitive to changes in FW availability than the smaller scenario. This study illustrates the need for farm-based biogas plant projects to secure long-term, stable supplies of co-substrates and to size plants’ capacity based on the availability of the co-substrates which drive methane production (and revenue generation).

A step by step selection method for the location and the size of a waste-to-energy facility targeting the maximum output energy and minimization of gate fee.

This study attempts the development of an algorithm in order to present a step by step selection method for the location and the size of a waste-to-energy facility targeting the maximum output energy, also considering the basic obstacle which is in many cases, the gate fee. Various parameters identified and evaluated in order to formulate the proposed decision making method in the form of an algorithm. The principle simulation input is the amount of municipal solid wastes (MSW) available for incineration and along with its net calorific value are the most important factors for the feasibility of the plant. Moreover, the research is focused both on the parameters that could increase the energy production and those that affect the R1 energy efficiency factor. Estimation of the final gate fee is achieved through the economic analysis of the entire project by investigating both expenses and revenues which are expected according to the selected site and outputs of the facility. In this point, a number of commonly revenue methods were included in the algorithm. The developed algorithm has been validated using three case studies in Greece-Athens, Thessaloniki, and Central Greece, where the cities of Larisa and Volos have been selected for the application of the proposed decision making tool. These case studies were selected based on a previous publication made by two of the authors, in which these areas where examined. Results reveal that the development of a «solid» methodological approach in selecting the site and the size of waste-to-energy (WtE) facility can be feasible. However, the maximization of the energy efficiency factor R1 requires high utilization factors while the minimization of the final gate fee requires high R1 and high metals recovery from the bottom ash as well as economic exploitation of recovered raw materials if any.

Decentralized Production of Fischer–Tropsch Biocrude via Coprocessing of Woody Biomass and Wet Organic Waste in Entrained Flow Gasification: Techno-Economic Analysis

The present work addresses the techno-economics of the decentralized coproduction of Fischer–Tropsch biocrude and liquefied natural gas via thermochemical conversion of woody biomass and wet organic waste to syngas in an entrained flow gasification reactor. The process design considers thermal pretreatment of the feedstock based on integrated drying of both the woody biomass and the organic waste using direct-contact superheated steam, and torrefaction for the dried wood. The superheated steam required for drying is produced from recovery of residual heat from the main conversion process. The overall cost of biocrude production has been shown to decrease when increasing the fraction of organic waste when considering gate fees for the organic waste, at the production site, above 10$/ton. For gate fees of 50$/ton, which are realistic for the current waste market, the cost of biocrude ranges between 25 and 22$/GJ for plant scales between 150 and 600 MW based on the input feedstock energy to the entrained flo...

Managing competitive municipal solid waste treatment systems: An agent-based approach

Private sector participation in municipal solid waste (MSW) management is increasingly being applied in many countries recently. However, it remains a largely unexplored issue whether different self-interested treatment operators can co-exist in an economically feasible and sustainable manner. To help the policy-maker s understand and manage competitive MSW treatment systems, this paper proposes an agent-based waste treatment model (AWTM) that consists of four types of agents, namely the refuse collector, specialized treatment unit (STU), the general treatment unit (GTU), and the regulator. An estimation-and-optimization approach is developed for profit-maximizing agents to set optimal gate fee and vie for specific waste in low-information competition. Based on the Singapore case, the experimental results imply that if the regulator deliberately promotes the STUs by intervening in waste allocation, the GTU could give up competing for the waste and greatly increase its gate fees as retaliation. Besides, driven by the increasing gate fee of the GTU, the STUs conservatively raise their gate fee; while the GTU will be the major beneficiary in the AWTM. Finally, to identify the optimal mixed policy under predefined constraints, the AWTM is integrated into a simulation-based optimization problem, which is solved by a genetic algorithm.

Modelling and analysis of a symbiotic waste management system

A municipal solid waste management system is symbiotic when there exists physical exchange of material or by-products between different treatment units. We propose a mathematical model for studying the interactive behaviour of different waste treatment operators in a symbiotic environment. Each operator is a self-interested entity, who sets his gate fee charge to maximise his own payoff. We study the properties and gate fee strategies of the operators, and also perform sensitivity analysis on various model parameters to discuss the local operator behaviour and the effects of various intervention strategies. We also propose a numerical algorithm to solve the model, yielding the optimal equilibrium gate fee charges, payoff and market share levels of different operators. Finally, computational studies based on a two-unit scenario in a case study of organic waste recycling is performed to demonstrate the interactive and dynamic behaviours of different operators. Our results strongly suggest that, to improve new treatment technology utilisation, subsidising the operating cost of the new treatment unit is more effective in the long-run than exerting control on the gate fee upper bounds of the operators by the system regulator. Furthermore, providing residual post-treatment discounts for treatment units can benefit the service users, rather than the waste treatment operators.

Dumping, waste management and ecological security: Evidence from England

Illegal waste dumping has been widely regarded as one of the biggest source of environmental damage. Waste facilities management is an important way of combating illegal dumping for environmental protection and sustainability. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis on the determinants of illegal waste dumping based on panel data of England for a period of 7 years (2008–2014) using count data models, to access the effects of different drivers (economic, institution, policy). To be more specific the results show that (1) the increase of landfill cost (including landfill tax and landfill gate fee) have significant negative impact on the occurrence of illegal dumping (2) more waste landfill facilities, income level and intensity of penalty discourage illegal dumping. Such findings are robust using all models. The results indicate the main challenges in combating illegal waste dumping and the respective actions needed from the point of legal factors (i.e., law enforcement), institution factors (i.e., recycling rate, landfill dispersion) and economic factors (i.e., income level).

Financial implications of compliance with EU waste management goals: Feasibility and consequences in a transition country.

This paper outlines the approach that can assist decision makers to have first preliminary insights regarding costs of complying with requested European Union municipal waste management goals in transition and developing countries. Serbia, as a joining member of European Union, must confront itself with the challenges resulting from European Union waste management directives. Implementation of waste separation units and the construction of sanitary landfills is already in place in Serbia. However, new waste management practice will need additional transformation and will require implementation of waste treatment technologies for additional management of generated waste. Implementation of analyzed best available technology/techniques for waste treatment can support the country's effort in reaching the policy goals. However, the question here is how much will the implementation of additional waste treatments influence the overall waste management costs? Results of the scenario's financial viability show that composting and sanitary landfill are the most viable solutions regarding the costs, even under increasing discount rates. Although different discount rates influence the overall gate fees and net present values, the level of affordability for different scenarios remains the same.

Cost–benefit analysis of GHG emission reduction in waste to energy projects of China under clean development mechanism

Energy recovery is widely considered an important part of hierarchy of waste management. Previously, researchers have primarily focused on cost-effectiveness analysis of solid waste management, ignoring the global warming potential (GWP) impacts. By integrating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the cost–benefit analysis, we analyzed the cost–benefit of GHG emissions for two waste to energy (WtE) methods: incineration with combined heat and power (ICHP) which produces electricity and heat, and landfill disposal with landfill gas utilization (LGU). We calculated both costs and benefits per ton certified GHG emission reductions (CER) for 20 clean development mechanism (CDM) projects with WtE technology in typical northern and southern cities in China. Furthermore, benefits were analyzed under two different scenarios: benefit only from recovery energy revenues; benefit from recovery energy revenues plus gate fee revenues. The results show that: (1) ICHP projects are beneficial from the GHG reduction standpoint; (2) The ratio of CER revenues to benefit is very high during 2008–2011. However, the decrease of CER price in CDM projects causes the disposal gate fee from local government to become more and more important for these two WtE technologies, especially for LGU. However, with or without the CDM, there is still a huge GHG reduction potential in solid waste management in China. Policies should be developed to facilitate and encourage WtE, and the selection of WtE method depends on geographical region and economics.

Comments by Suresh Narayanan, on Export of Recyclable Materials: Evidence from Japan

Suresh Narayanan: This paper tests the waste haven hypothesis (WHH), which examines the exporting of physical waste materials from countries with stringent environmental regulations to countries where such regulations are lax. The paper focuses on Japan as the exporter of waste and 31 Asian and developed countries as the potential importers of wastes—by implication nations with lax environmental regulations. The paper limits itself to four recyclable resource materials.This version is a much improved one, with the authors having incorporated many of the earlier suggestions. The paper now discusses more explicitly the gains of both developing countries and Japan from the trade in waste. The authors’ data on the regulation index has improved and, more importantly, they find that the regulation gap (the differences in environmental regulations between Japan and the countries that import waste) significantly affects the waste trade. In other words, they contend that their findings now support the WHH that Japan exports waste to countries with less stringent environmental regulations. It is worth noting that the previous version did not.I am still unclear if the predictions the authors set out to test (“high-GDP countries with high wage rates will export to low-GDP countries with low wage rates that have lax regulations and are not too far away”) actually come out of the WHH framework. The better known pollution haven hypothesis (PHH) suggests that highly polluting firms in developed countries with stringent environmental regulations will redirect investment or relocate to countries with the lowest environmental standards or weakest enforcement. This suggests three testable propositions:The WHH as advanced by Kellenberg (2012) differs from the PHH only in the sense that it refers to exports of physical waste rather than the relocation of polluting industries to countries with lax environmental regulations. Are the predictions that the authors set out to test the equivalent testable propositions from the WHH? Despite a better discussion of the WHH in this version, this point is not any clearer. According to D’Amato Mazzanti, and Montini (2013), Kellenberg stressed the importance of structural (population density), market price (gate fees), and technology/capacity as well as regulatory stringency and enforcement in influencing the waste trade. How do the predictions outlined by the authors tie in with the factors outlined by Kellenberg? Distance, for example, received no mention in the WHH.The empirical findings of the authors indicate that countries with a higher GDP, lower per capita income, and location near Japan were more likely to import waste from Japan. Furthermore, high-quality waste was more likely to be exported because of the difficulty of recycling low-quality waste. Finally, their findings suggest that importing countries that implemented stringent environmental regulations were less likely to import waste products.It puzzles me that the authors were only concerned with the sign and significance of the coefficients. Granted, the model might have issues of specification, data, and measurement errors. Despite these limitations, the authors have gone ahead with their estimates. Therefore, they should not have stopped at presenting just the estimated coefficients, which offer no direct interpretation. It would have been more meaningful to present the associated probabilities as well, with the caveat that they are indicative rather than conclusive.Of the variables influencing the waste trade, only environmental regulation serves as a direct policy handle that can be manipulated, if necessary. But this does not necessarily mean that it should be. Therefore, I found it surprising that the authors recommend that all Asian countries should impose substantial tariff rates uniformly on all types of waste to reduce waste export. This is a curious suggestion to make, especially because the authors had argued earlier that lower income countries have some advantages from engaging in the waste trade. Why would they want to restrict a trade that they were benefiting from?Perhaps the policy prescription, if any, that might be made on the basis of their finding is that low income countries should re-evaluate their costs and benefits from engaging in this trade to ensure that they import only waste that they can handle without putting their recycling workers or the environment at risk. Environmental regulations can then be tightened to ensure that hazardous waste is kept out and only safe wastes are imported.The authors make two other useful suggestions. First, countries engaging in exporting waste should inspect it to ensure that only clean and nontoxic recyclables are distributed. Second, importing countries should ensure that they have recycling facilities with environmentally sound technology to handle the waste. Neither of these insights, however, comes directly from the findings of the study.

User value for Kumasi zoological garden, Ghana

This study identifies factors influencing the demand for recreation at the Kumasi zoological garden and estimates the consumer surplus for users. An onsite survey was conducted with the aid of a questionnaire to collect data from visitors to the zoo. Two stage least square (2SLS) and ordinary least square (OLS) regression was performed in a double log functional form. The result reveals that socioeconomic factors significantly influence visitation to the zoo. In addition, adult visitors enjoy a consumer surplus of GH¢29.21 per annum. Student visitors enjoy a consumer surplus of GH¢17.22. This suggests that the actual price paid by visitors to the Kumasi Zoo understates the true value they attach to such a visit. The study concluded that travel costs influence a visitor's decision to visit the Kumasi Zoo and that, generally, visitors are willing to pay a higher amount to enjoy the services of the zoo than they actually pay as gate fees. The study recommends an increment in gate fees for adults and students.

Development of a decision model for the techno-economic assessment of municipal solid waste utilization pathways

Economic competitiveness is one of the key factors in making decisions towards the development of waste conversion facilities and devising a sustainable waste management strategy. The goal of this study is to develop a framework, as well as to develop and demonstrate a comprehensive techno-economic model to help county and municipal decision makers in establishing waste conversion facilities. The user-friendly data-intensive model, called the FUNdamental ENgineering PrinciplEs-based ModeL for Estimation of Cost of Energy and Fuels from MSW (FUNNEL-Cost-MSW), compares nine different waste management scenarios, including landfilling and composting, in terms of economic parameters such as gate fees and return on investment. In addition, a geographic information system (GIS) model was developed to determine suitable locations for waste conversion facilities and landfill sites based on integration of environmental, social, and economic factors. Finally, a case study on Parkland County and its surrounding counties in the province of Alberta, Canada, was conducted and a sensitivity analysis was performed to assess the influence of the key technical and economic parameters on the calculated results.

Feasibility analysis of municipal solid waste mass burning in the Region of East Macedonia--Thrace in Greece.

The present work conducts a preliminary techno-economic feasibility study for a single municipal solid waste mass burning to an electricity plant for the total municipal solid waste potential of the Region of Eastern Macedonia - Thrace, in Greece. For a certain applied and highly efficient technology and an installed capacity of 400,000 t of municipal solid waste per year, the available electrical power to grid would be approximately 260 GWh per year (overall plant efficiency 20.5% of the lower heating value). The investment for such a plant was estimated at €200m. Taking into account that 37.9% of the municipal solid waste lower heating value can be attributed to their renewable fractions, and Greek Law 3851/2010, which transposes Directive 2009/28/EC for Renewable Energy Sources, the price of the generated electricity was calculated at €53.19/MWhe. Under these conditions, the economic feasibility of such an investment depends crucially on the imposed gate fees. Thus, in the gate fee range of 50-110 € t(-1), the internal rate of return increases from 5% to above 15%, whereas the corresponding pay-out time periods decrease from 11 to about 4 years.

Integrating remediation and resource recovery: On the economic conditions of landfill mining

This article analyzes the economic potential of integrating material separation and resource recovery into a landfill remediation project, and discusses the result and the largest impact factors. The analysis is done using a direct costs/revenues approach and the stochastic uncertainties are handled using Monte Carlo simulation.Two remediation scenarios are applied to a hypothetical landfill. One scenario includes only remediation, while the second scenario adds resource recovery to the remediation project. Moreover, the second scenario is divided into two cases, case A and B. In case A, the landfill tax needs to be paid for re-deposited material and the landfill holder does not own a combined heat and power plant (CHP), which leads to disposal costs in the form of gate fees. In case B, the landfill tax is waived on the re-deposited material and the landfill holder owns its own CHP.Results show that the remediation project in the first scenario costs about €23/ton. Adding resource recovery as in case A worsens the result to −€36/ton, while for case B the result improves to −€14/ton. This shows the importance of landfill tax and the access to a CHP. Other important factors for the result are the material composition in the landfill, the efficiency of the separation technology used, and the price of the saleable material.