Why is incineration bad?
Incineration: • Encourages more waste The proposed Cardiff incinerator is designed to process 350,000 tonnes of waste a year. This is three times more than the waste predicted for all five surrounding local authority areas. • Increases congestion More than 250 lorries will be bringing waste from all around south Wales to Cardiff every day. This is a 3% increase in traffic to add to the congestion and pollution on Cardiff’s roads. • Generates energy inefficiently Incinerators that generate electricity produce more greenhouse gases than gas fired power stations – see Dirty Truths for more information. • Causes pollution Smoke, gases and ash from incinerators can contain harmful dioxins which are a cause of cancer.
Incineration is the thermal destruction of waste. Modern incineration systems use high temperatures, controlled air, and excellent mixing to change the chemical, physical, or biological character or composition of waste materials. The new systems are equipped with state-of-the-art air pollution control devices to capture particulate and gaseous emission contaminates. There are still many health concerns connected with incineration systems, especially for populations living near incinerators.
