Burning rubbish for power is sensible

Should Australia slash the amount of waste it dumps in landfill and instead burn as much as possible of it to generate electricity? Or should the emphasis be on slashing the amount of waste we generate by as much as possible, full stop? Both are crucial — and they are complementary, not competing.

Victoria is poised to explore the benefits of burning rubbish to generate electricity. Australia has an opportunity to combine these two economically, environmentally and socially sensible aims in a rational and profitable response to two pressures, one immediate, the other long-standing.

China’s untelegraphed decision late in 2017 to immediately end its role as the world’s biggest importer of recyclables is an existential threat to the Australian market; suddenly the demand for recyclable waste collapsed, leaving it with all-but-worthless material that had been valued at hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars.

International efforts to limit the effects of humaninduced global warming and climate change are driving the historic shift to low-carbon economies. Adding impetus, a senate committee has just recommended a national plan to phase out coal-fired power stations.

Burning rubbish to power a simple steam turbine to generate electricity has been undertaken for more than 100 years in various places, but in recent times Europe has been leading in intertwining waste management and environmentally manageable power generation.

European experience shows emissions in line with those created by gas-fired power stations, so they are less damaging than coal. There are about 500 plants in Europe generating electricity from combustible, nonrecyclable residential and industrial waste.

Such incineration needs to be rigorously filtered and monitored to prevent undue emissions, of course, and it should not starve attention from reducing waste overall. But its surge is timely and looks economically and environmentally sensible. Melbourne, June 4.