[greenyes] Watching the U.K.

["Eric Lombardi" <eric@no.address>]

Hi all,
 
If you didn't catch this in the recent Waste News (10/11/04, p.19) an
official from the U.K. presented the following information:  (1) that by
2020, according to EU law, they will need to be diverting 80% of their
biodegradable waste from landfills; and (2) the current U.K. landfill
tax is $24 per ton, and will rise to $50 per ton by 2010.
 
Now that's what I call a well-funded rates and dates target.  In the USA
we don't have anything even close to these numbers, and why not?  So,
with numbers like these, the decline of the European landfill industry
is well underway. which begs the question, where are they going?  The
choices are really down to two:  Maximum diversion through the 3R's
(inc. composting under recycling), or, incineration.  My read on the
situation is that they are now talking about a 70/30 future . 70%
recovery and 30% burn.  That burn part is a real problem, and it's the
roots of new incineration proposals and "black box" technology solutions
in the USA and around the world.  So, the good news is that global
momentum is building against landfills, and the bad news is that this
will feed the growth of the burn industry . unless . 
 
Eric
 
 
Eric Lombardi
Executive Director
Eco-Cycle, Inc
Boulder, CO
303-444-6634
www.ecocycle.org