The tweet by Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) highlights a surprising yet significant development in China's waste management strategy: the country is running out of trash due to its extensive waste-to-energy programs. The post, which includes a video and accompanying text, reveals that China’s cities are experiencing a shortage of garbage, prompting some waste-to-energy plants to purchase trash at around $7 per ton to maintain operations. 

This paradoxical situation arises because china has aggressively expanded its infrastructure for converting municipal solid waste into energy, with over 1,100 such facilities now operational nationwide. The video, sourced from Schbachlq, illustrates the scale of this issue, showing images of overflowing landfills, waste processing plants, and the environmental impact of excessive garbage, juxtaposed with the technological advancements that have made trash a valuable resource.

Delving deeper into the context, the tweet explains that before 2010, china faced a massive headache with urban waste due to its large population and high waste generation rates. However, a pivotal solution proposed by Du Xiangwan, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, transformed the approach by suggesting the transportation of garbage to power plants equipped with specially designed incinerators.

These facilities not only convert waste into energy but also mitigate environmental harm by not emitting harmful gases and repurposing the leftover ash for construction materials like cement. The tweet notes that these plants now generate between 200 to 500 kilowatt hours of electricity per ton of waste, earning between $15 - $40 per ton, and collectively burn 800,000 tons of garbage daily, surpassing the rate of new waste production. This shift has turned trash into a lucrative commodity, with china even exporting this technology to over forty countries.

On one hand, it represents a remarkable feat of environmental engineering and economic innovation, addressing both energy needs and waste disposal challenges. On the other hand, it raises questions about sustainability and the long-term viability of relying on incineration, especially as waste sorting initiatives reduce the availability of burnable trash. The thread’s reactions, ranging from skepticism about the environmental claims to admiration for the technological export, reflect a broader global interest in China’s approach.




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SIBY JEYYA

04/08/2025 07:59 AM