Energy-From-Waste & Climate Change
“If the goal is greenhouse gas reduction, then WTE [waste-to-energy] should be considered as an option under U.S. renewable energy policies.1" - From a 2009 study conducted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and North Carolina State University
When greenhouse gases (GHG) such as methane, carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide are released into the earth’s atmosphere, they trap infrared 
radiation from sunlight. This is stored as heat in the atmosphere and can be tied to the increase in the earth’s average temperature, causing what is known as global warming or climate change.
Energy-from-Waste offsets greenhouse gases to combat climate change. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), for every ton of municipal solid waste processed at an Energy-from-Waste (EfW – also known as waste-to-energy) facility, the release of approximately one ton of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions into the atmosphere is prevented due to the avoidance of methane generation at landfills, the offset of greenhouse gases from fossil fuel electrical production, and the recovery of metals.
FACT: Methane is a greenhouse gas, mostly emitted from decomposing waste in landfills in the United States, which is more than 20 times the potency of carbon dioxide and is ranked as a dangerous contributor to climate change.
Energy-from-Waste facilities avoid the production of methane while producing significantly more electricity from each ton of waste compared to landfills. Covanta’s facilities use advanced air pollution control equipment and continuous emissions monitoring systems that operate well below and comply with strict state and federal emission standards. Our EfW facilities operate 24/7 and are in compliance 99.9 percent of the time. We strive for outstanding environmental performance and compliance 100 percent of the time. In addition, all Energy-from-Waste facilities must comply with the EPA’s Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) standards.
Here are additional environmental facts about Covanta and energy-from-waste:
• Covanta Energy’s net GHG emissions for operation of EfW facilities worldwide are approximately negative 20 million tons. In other words, Covanta’s facilities helped reduce emissions that otherwise would have occurred. Further GHG reductions are realized by the avoidance of carbon emissions from long-haul transportation methods used in shipping trash to distant landfills. Waste used as fuel in EfW facilities is typically generated in the surrounding area.
• In over 25 years, Covanta operated EfW facilities total GHG mitigation have exceeded 350 million tons – the equivalent of planting 8 billion trees.
• Covanta’s Energy-from-Waste facilities average emissions are dramatically below the established limits —usually operating at 60-90 percent or more below the required limit.
• Energy-from-Waste facilities in the U.S. recover more than 700,000 tons of metal from the waste stream after local recycling efforts. Covanta alone recovers 400,000 tons of metal from the EfW process annually.
• Because most EfW facilities receive waste from local communities, carbon dioxide associated with the long-haul trucking of waste to distant landfills is also avoided.
• Under the Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism program2, Energy-from-Waste is recognized as a source of greenhouse gas credits. The EfW facility operated by Covanta in Lee County, Florida is generating and selling these credits.
1 Excerpted from the U.S. EPA and North Carolina State University 2009 study “Is It Better to Burn or Bury Waste for Clean Electricity Generation?”Is It Better to Burn or Bury Waste for Clean Electricity Generation? Authors, P. Ozge Kaplan , Joseph Decarolis , and Susan Thorneloe, National Risk Management Research Laboratory, United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA), Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27711, and Department of Civil Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695
http://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/es802395e
2 Kyoto Protocol and the Clean Development Mechanism program
The Kyoto Protocol is a United Nations international pact to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 2012, which was never ratified by the United States. EfW is recommended as a way to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and many countries with binding commitments to Kyoto, such as those in the European Union have.