Dear Editor:
Despite considerable effort to find merit in the comments of Hildegard Bechler in The Record (Incinerator creates toxic mess for region, Letters to the editor, Jan. 14), regarding energy from waste, the task is fruitless.
For instance, an energy-from-waste facility measures approximately 1,200 data points every second of every day, so regulators are well informed about any and all emissions.
An energy-from-waste plant reduces greenhouse gases by one tonne for every tonne that is treated, exactly the opposite of Bechler's claim.
Comprehensive study of hundreds of environmental assessment studies undertaken by CPF Associates of Bethesda, Maryland, concludes that energy-from-waste plants have almost no measurable effect on rivers, lakes and groundwater.
As for the ash, an energy-from-waste plant reduces the original waste volume by 90 per cent, and only one per cent of this takes the form of fly ash, which in many cases is entirely inert.
The claim that an energy-from-waste operation creates unpredictable synergies implies that the collective expertise of professional staff in environmental offices across Europe, North America and Asia is wrong.
It's worth noting that with 800 plants in operation worldwide there are at least that many reports, assessments, approvals and municipal decisions supporting a sustainable energy-from-waste solution.
Though Bechler identifies some opposition, public opinion polling shows that more than 83 per cent of British Columbians support energy-from-waste
to manage waste, up from 60 per cent in 2004.
Of these, almost two-thirds support the use of energy-from-waste in their own community.
Energy-from-waste operators support the 3Rs and consider these to be the highest priority areas of focus in the waste system, which is to say that energy-from-waste plant seeks to extract energy from non-recycled material, a resource that would otherwise end up wasted in a landfill.
When commenting on wasted "fossil fuels," Bechler may be referring to plastics, which are only buried if not recycled. In fact, an energy-from-waste plants turns fossil fuel into heat, steam or electricity in a process that is cleaner than coal and oil, and comparable to natural gas.
Finally, there's a certain mathematical truth about recycling that too many people choose to ignore.
That is, if the municipality provides blue box service across 90 per cent of its jurisdiction, and 90 per cent of the citizenry participate, and there are available and sustainable markets for 90 per cent of the material that is collected, then the recycling rate for the community will stand at about 73 per cent - assuming that each part of the system operates at 100 per cent efficiency.
Recycling is a complicated process, with many moving parts; it requires an across-the-board commitment from politicians, staff, industry, landlords, tenants, employees, householders, etc. - in short, just about anyone who comes in contact with waste that can be a resource.
Under these circumstances, Metro Vancouver has shown tremendous leadership and achieved remarkable success - all while utilizing energy-from-waste technology to process waste for the past 20-plus years.
The energy-from-waste industry in Canada believes that the 3Rs come first and that we should capture the inherent energy in a safe and sustainable technology only once we've collected, processed and repurposed everything we can.
John P. Foden, executive director, Canadian Energy-From-Waste Coalition
