Social background and objectives

After the steady implementation of the 3Rs, I clarified the systems, technologies, and social conditions for reducing the use of fossil fuels through the supply of electricity by generating electricity by using the enormous amount of heat energy generated by the incineration of MSW (Municipal Solid Waste), and worked to promote energy recovery, or Waste-to-Energy (WtE), internationally. The goal of the project was to improve the current situation in which developing countries have not made much progress in introducing the effective use of incineration facilities by developing appropriate guidelines, and to raise the level of WtE.

Progress and results of activities

I have surveyed cases of WtE born in Japan, and organized and analyzed the data in anticipation of creating a database. I have been working with IGES (Institute for Global Environmental Strategies) since 2018 to develop the guideline, which will include not only the technical aspects of incineration and power generation, but also the social background, the requirements for administrative organizations, the economic aspects, and the contents related to public awareness. As a result of our efforts to ensure the quality level of the guideline by holding a specific session at relevant conference – 3Rincs 2019 (https://www.3rincs.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Report-on-5th3RINCs.pdf) - and receiving professional reviews at public conferences, we have completed the guideline in English, which is shown on the right, and published it on the web in June 2020. Due to the large number of downloads, a Japanese version is also being planned. We will further clarify the criteria and conditions to promote WtE and continue to provide tools to guide global warming prevention and sustainable development of the world based on rational social investment.

Expected effect

While waste should be reduced in the future, we would like to further improve our contribution to the realization of a decarbonized society by promoting the effective use of WtE and other resources.

URL

http://://www.okayama-u.ac.jp/user/catalgas/index.html