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Singapore’s Tuas incineration plant decommissioned following explosion that left 2 dead in 2021

Singapore /

TuasOne waste-to-energy plant will replace the now decommissioned Tuas Incineration Plant on Tuas Avenue. The decommissioned plant ceased operations following an explosion at the plant in 2021, which killed two workers. The 2021 fire follows another at a separate Tuas plant that injured three workers. Waste management company Veolia was fined $135,000 in 2013 for a blast and fire that injured three workers.  Veolia Environmental Services Singapore pleaded guilty in a district court to contravening the Workplace Safety and Health Act by failing to thoroughly test a waste liquid before mixing it with a chemical liquid. It caused an explosion at its Tuas incineration plant on Nov 8, 2013, and the resulting fire spread to an area the size of about two football fields.

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Convergence – public relations or public manipulation?

Waimate /

South Island Resource Recovery Limited (SIRRL) has enlisted the services of Public Relations firm Convergence to oversee the public rollout of ‘Project Kea’, the proposal to truck 365,000 tonnes of waste to Glenavy, near Waimate, to be disposed of by incineration. Convergence was in close contact with Waimate District Council in August 2021 before the public release of the proposal. This involved the company requesting a list of the town’s “key influencers” in an attempt to gain local support for Project Kea. The company also asked Mayor Craig Rowley for a “supporting statement.” Convergence, as part of their responsibilities, provided a website to disseminate more information about the proposal. However, this website, which was intended to inform the public, was found to contain misleading and false information. Furthermore, it failed to include crucial details about the actual proposal, potentially impacting the public’s understanding and perception of Project Kea. Many people in Waimate believe that the public relations company has been used to manipulate the Waimate community. Learn more about Convergence and its role in Project Kea below. CONVERGENCE

Convergence – public relations or public manipulation? Read More »

Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.

Europe /

A Danish fiasco – Amager Bakke, the billion dollar Copenhagen incineration plant. “Today, we import waste with high plastic content in order to [use the excess] capacity at the incineration plants, with increasing CO2 emissions as a result.” – Dan Jorgensen, Denmark’s climate minister. Zerowaste Europe exposes questionable decision-making processes, poor project planning, and economic and environmental failures resulting from the €534 million Amager Bakke.   LEARN MORE

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Sweden – The poster child for W-t-E or an example of what not to do?

Europe /

Journeyman Pictures presents – Burn or Not to Burn—the hidden truth behind Sweden’s waste disposal infrastructure. In Sweden, waste incineration plants convert excess and non-recycled rubbish into energy. The Swedish Government classifies this process as recycling. But is waste incineration for energy recovery sustainable? Despite having 34 incinerators, Sweden’s waste disposal infrastructure accounts for a mere 4% of the country’s total electricity generation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=caw-969W-D4

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The Waste-to-Energy reality: Faked emissions data and huge profits.

China /

It is seen as the ideal solution for dealing with urban waste, but fraud and untruths lie behind this major industry, writes Yan Xiaowei – Dialogue Earth. “The numbers are often manipulated,” said one industry insider with twenty years of experience. “Never mind what they’re up to. I managed a plant for years, and I’ve done it all. It’s not that you can’t remove dioxins; it’s just that they’re very hard to detect.”   Energy Magazine’s Yan Xiaowei gained access to several such plants and revealed the shady interests and unwritten rules at work.  READ FULL ARTICLE More on Waste-to-Energy in China. Four years of waste sorting leaves China’s incinerators short of fuel Despite a reduction in the requisite material, China continues to build new waste-to-power incinerators. Its policy for utilising waste needs standardising and refining writes Li Jiacheng Chinese waste: the burning issue The state remains unprepared for the pollution and protests its ambitious garbage-incineration plans could generate, writes Yu Dawei. Dirty truth about China’s incinerators China’s “clean” trash burning plants have a dark underside, writes Elizabeth Balkan. Stuffed with coal, many operate like fossil-fired power stations, only more laxly governed. Veolia Likeng incinerator in Guangzhou Local government officials and Veolia insisted that the incinerator operated according to EU standards and that the high temperature used in the facility would destroy all pollutants including dioxins and furans. However, a 2009 news investigation of the ashes surprisingly found intact rope, cloth, red plastic bags, and shoes, indicating incomplete combustion.

The Waste-to-Energy reality: Faked emissions data and huge profits. Read More »

“The company investigated building these plants in NZ and found it was uneconomic”. Evan Maehl, Waste Management NZ.

Waimate /

North & South magazine reporter George Driver asked New Zealand’s two largest waste management companies whether they would support ‘Project Kea’, and their response was NO. “I don’t want to state the obvious,” he says, “But you’ve got the largest waste company in New Zealand, which used to be owned by a Chinese company that operated 10 of these facilities in China, so why aren’t we doing it?” – Evan Maehl, managing director – Waste Management NZ. Read N&S Article Will SIRRL require the importation of waste to feed ‘Project Kea’ ? Below, you can read more about the composition of the waste South Island Resource Recovery Limited intends to burn and where they claim they will source that waste. WASTE

“The company investigated building these plants in NZ and found it was uneconomic”. Evan Maehl, Waste Management NZ. Read More »

Waste dumper owing millions now in Australia.

ChCh /

A man who owed almost $3 million after abandoning thousands of bales of rubbish on land in Christchurch is now living in Australia. In September 2023, the High Court ordered Michael Denis Corcoran to pay his landlord $2.8 million. Now, he is being chased for bankruptcy.Corcoran’s ERP Group company had been unlawfully storing baled waste at several locations in and around Christchurch. Mr Corcoran said he had been baling the waste for a proposed Waste-to-Energy plant in Waimate. Read Article here See below for more on Michael Corcoran and ERP Group’s involvement with Renew Energy Limited. ERP GROUP

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Major fire at AVR’s waste-to-energy plant in Rozenburg, Netherlands.

Europe /

Following a devastating fire at its Rozenburg plant, which destroyed the power plant section of the facility, WtE company AVR has had to divert the incoming municipal solid waste away from the plant. When operational, the plant processes 1.3 million tonnes of waste per year. The diverted waste will be taken to a landfill in Tilburg and stored until the plant is again operational. Read Article Here

Major fire at AVR’s waste-to-energy plant in Rozenburg, Netherlands. Read More »

Lithium-ion Battery fire shuts down major Tokyo waste disposal facility.

Japan /

The incident severely damaged the facility’s conveyor belt, which transports waste for crushing, and the equipment that separates garbage from metal. The facility’s yard, where waste is stored, is currently at full capacity, further exacerbating the situation. Security camera footage revealed that a battery pack containing lithium-ion batteries ignited, leading to a series of explosions. The warehouse was empty at the time, preventing any potential injuries. Read Full Article

Lithium-ion Battery fire shuts down major Tokyo waste disposal facility. Read More »

Bee’s needs: Why air pollution matters to pollinators.

Waimate /

This Natural England article on the GOV.UK website highlights how air pollution, including nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) produced from the combustion of plastics, has devastating effects on pollinator insects. This should be of concern to all of us, not least the food-producing shareholders of Renew Energy Limited (REL), the New Zealand arm of South Island Resource Recovery Limited (SIRRL) Read Article Here

Bee’s needs: Why air pollution matters to pollinators. Read More »