Incineration of Hazardous Waste: A Sustainable Process?

The first objective of any waste policy should be to minimize the negative effects of the generation and management of waste on human health and the environment. Re-use and recycling of waste, although of high priority in the waste hierarchy, is not necessarily always the best treatment method. In the case of hazardous waste containing toxic components, thermal treatment with energy recovery constitutes a cost effective treatment option, complying with the pillars of “Sustainability” and the requirements of “Resource Efficient and Cleaner Production”. Iron recovery from the incineration ashes, water recycling, substitution of fossil fuel by high calorific waste in the incineration process, and energy recovery, avoid the use of non-renewable resources. Emissions to air and discharges to water of a typical rotary kiln for the incineration of hazardous waste, are far below the European emission limit values. Furthermore, recent studies on health effects of modern, state-of-the art waste incinerators show that any potential damage to the health of those living close-by or working in a hazardous waste incineration plant, is likely to be very small, if detectable.