London: Where Does All The Waste Go? - Part 1

London discards of almost 4000 tons of recyclable rubbish each week, but in truth, this is a very tiny fraction of the total amount that it produces. With such huge amounts of rubbish generating from this city, the question ‘where does all the waste go?’ seems reasonable.

Let us explore the question in detail.

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Types of Rubbish

Broadly speaking, there are two types of waste that come out of a normal household:

1. Recayclable

2. Non-recayclable

Depending on whether the waste is recyclable or not, the collection and processing of waste is different. Although there are separate bins for recyclable and non-recyclable waste, households can pack recyclable waste in clear sacks whereas the non-recyclable waste goes in black sacks.

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1. Non-recyclable Waste

As mentioned earlier, the nature of the waste determines its treatment route. Non-recyclable waste is the least favorite, so we will start by seeing how that is treated. To begin with, the local councils collect the rubbish in black sacks or wheelie bins. Once the collection is complete, this waste is transported to one of the twenty-something transfer stations located near London. At these transfer stations, trucks full of waste are unloaded and the waste is transferred to containers. These containers, each holding up to 12 tons of waste, are then loaded onto railway carriages or lorries.

Being non-recyclable does not mean the waste cannot be used for any purpose. Non-recyclable waste from the city of London is treated in the following ways:

• Energy Generation

• Dumping in Landfills

These two options offer a different way of disposing of waste. Let us consider each on:

a. Energy Generation

Without a doubt, energy generation is the preferable option. As of now, 22 percent of the non-recyclable waste, often known as residual waste, is used in energy generation. Energy generation from waste is a modern technique that uses waste instead of fossil fuels to generate energy in the form of heat and electricity. This alternative makes a better use of waste which may otherwise be occupying a landfill.

b. Dumping in Landfills

The residual waste which cannot be used for energy generation is sent to the landfill site. Although this is not an environmentally friendly option, the landfills holding the waste are engineered according to environmental standards. These landfills have strict checks on the gas and liquid emissions. Once near the landfill site, the containers of waste are unloaded and transferred to trucks that will carry the waste directly to the site. Most of this journey is on private land. The trucks then carry these containers full of waste to the landfill site and drop the waste there. Finally, the containers are loaded on the railway carriage or lorry so the process may begin again. The containers are weighed on a weigh-bridge as they come in and out of a landfill so that the site knows how much to charge.

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2. Recyclable Waste

After completing the discussion on non-recyclable waste, we move towards the more environmentally friendly species of waste. Recyclable waste, as the name suggests, can be recycled and used in the production cycle once again. However, before any of this happens, the waste needs to be sorted. Although there are separate bins for the various recyclable materials, they can be put together in a bag as well. In the latter case, sorting becomes mandatory.

First of all, the waste is sorted by size using disc screens. Following that, an overhead magnet is used to separate the steel and iron from the recyclable fuse. Next, an eddy current is used to filter any aluminum products from the waste. Finally, air and laser jets are utilized to separate the plastic from the mixture.

Going through the sorting process, the recyclable waste is separated into the following categories:

Plastics

• Paper Products

• Metals, such as cans

• Glass

Each material goes through a different process. We will consider each one in turn.

a. Plastics

This is one of the toughest materials to recycle. In the form of bottles, the plastics behave well and can be transformed into pellets which can be used to make different products. Generally, these products belong to a very wide range from traffic cones to drainage pipes to garden furniture and toys.

b. Paper

The most successfully recycled material is paper. In the UK, 57 percent of the paper used is successfully recycled. The demand for paper in the UK is 12 million tons and half is produced domestically. The local paper production companies utilize almost all of the recycled paper and any paper which is not recycled locally is exported for recycling. In London, paper producers have 74 percent of their raw material needs fulfilled by recycled paper.

c. Metal Cans

The most common metal used for the manufacture of cans is aluminum. Aluminum is one of the easiest materials to recycle. Moreover, aluminum can be recycled again and again without losing quality. Recycling aluminum saves 95 percent energy when compared with can production from scratch. Metal cans are crushed and molten to create metal which can then be used to make more cans. Despite such benefits, aluminum is not recycled to its full potential and only one third of the total amount of cans consumed in the UK is recycled.

d. Glass

The good news about glass recycling is that it hit record figures in 2005. The bad news, however, is that this is only half the amount we consume. Glass is crushed finely and heated up to melt it. Following that, the molten glass is molded into various shapes as per the demand. Recycling glass reduces carbon dioxide emissions and also saves the energy required to produce glass from scratch.

Everyday processes create a lot of rubbish. This rubbish, if not treated properly, can create all sorts of trouble. In London, rubbish is treated according to its nature. If the rubbish is recyclable, it is sorted and recycled to make it usable for further production. If it is non-recyclable, it is preferably used in energy generation or as a last resort, sent to be dumped in landfills.