Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
C
ONNECTION BETWEEN
C
OUNTRIES IN THE
E
UROPEAN
U
NION
VIA
L
EGISLATION AND
T
RADE AND THE
I
MPACT
ON THE
S
WEDISH
W
ASTE
I
NCINCERATION
This section will describe the connections between EU countries in terms of common
legislation and trade in waste and electricity. Differences and similarities in waste
management and district heating will also be outlined.
European Legislation Affecting Energy and Waste
The common legislation in the European Union connects the countries to each other. This
section will describe policies and directives that influence waste incineration. The European
Union's member states are obliged to implement the directives in their national legislation.
The core of the European Union is the internal market which means free mobility of
goods, services, people, and capital. This can be in conflict with waste management goals;
examples are the principles of proximity and self-sufficiency, meaning that waste should be
treated in the proximity of its origin and that member states should be self-reliant as regards
treatment capacity. This is stated in the Framework Directive (European Union, 1975) which
also defines waste as “any substance or object which the holder disposes of or is required to
dispose of” and establishes the fundamental concept of the Polluter Pays Principle. One
problem with the Framework Directive is that it does not clearly state when waste ceases to
be waste and becomes a secondary material. In the Shipment of Waste Ordinance (European
Council, 1993), waste is divided into two categories - for disposal and for recovery - where
trading in the former is forbidden, in order to satisfy both the internal market and the
proximity and self-sufficiency goals. Environmental concerns may be in conflict with free
trade, both in terms of differing cost for waste treatment options due to varying standards and
subsidies to the material recovery market. It is important to harmonise standards for waste
treatment options in order not to “draw” waste to less controlled plants. The Directive on
landfill (European Union, 1999) and the Directive on the incineration of waste (European
Union, 2000) have this purpose. The Directive on the incineration of waste sets permitted
maximum levels for emissions to the atmosphere and directions for monitoring the emissions.
Emissions to water are also regulated, there are directions as to how the combustion process
should be controlled, and how to take care of the residual products. It concerns both waste
incineration plants and plants that burn both waste and other fuels, and has meant investment
costs for the plants in Sweden in order to fulfil these demands. Whereas the directive is
specific about emission levels, it is vague on how to classify efficient energy recovery of
waste, which is a shortcoming. It says “the heat generated during the incineration and co-
incineration process is recovered as far as practicable e.g. through combined heat and power,
the generating of process steam or district heating”. The performance of waste incineration
plants differs widely, as can be seen from Figure 3, and is detailed further in the section on
European differences in waste management and use of district heating. A definition of what
an efficient energy recovery of waste is should be introduced. This weak point has been
observed by the European Commission, which suggests that the energy efficiency of the plant
should decide whether to classify it as a disposal plant or a recovery plant. The use of
