With an ever expanding mountain of waste and increased pressure on landfill sites, there is a growing need for energy-from-waste plants in the UK, particularly within municipalities but also within industry as a whole. At Mott MacDonald our extensive skills and experience in both the waste and energy sectors mean we're ideally equipped to assist on energy-from- waste developments.

By converting waste into heat or electricity in a modern energy-from-waste facility, it is usually possible to not only achieve the environmental benefits but also create a viable business for the municipality or utility concerned. When undertaken in an environmentally sound manner energy-from-waste is generally given preference over direct disposal to landfill.

The main drivers for the development of energy-from-waste plants in the UK have originated from the European Commission, through the Framework Directive on Waste (91/156/EEC) and its subsequent Directives. The EC Landfill Directive has placed further restrictions on the deposit of untreated waste. These European principles of waste management have been promulgamated in the UK through the National Waste Strategy and Waste Management Regulations 1994. The aim is to reduce the amount of bio-degradable (hence potentially combustible) waste sent to landfill by two thirds before 2020. The National Waste Strategy promotes the recovery of energy, in the form of electricity or heat, as one way in which this waste can be put to beneficial use while at the same time contributing to this reduction target. The UK government estimates that 100+ new energy-from-waste plants may be required to achieve this objective.

Mott MacDonald has contributed to the development of several energy-from-waste projects. Our involvement starts even before there is a project, by undertaking feasibility studies. These can include technical and economic studies of various waste management options - eg,for determining the preferred technology for an industrial client and the conceptual design of the plant or development of the client’s waste strategy. In the early stages of project development we provide additional support through site selection studies, planning, IPC applications and environmental impact assessment, together with BAT (Best Available Techniques) studies and public consultation.

In the past, the development of municipal energy-from-waste incinerators has been the responsibility of local authorities but nowadays, it is often the private sector that develops, owns and operates such energy-from-waste facilities. This includes waste management companies such as BIFFA and Cleanaway plus private venture companies. There is also potential with industrial companies to incinerate specific wastes which they produce, to produce useful heat or electrical energy - eg packaging wastes, paper sludge, wood chips, coffee beans, even sewage sludge. In some cases it may be possible to burn these wastes on existing, suitably modified boilerplant.