Homework No.

Cost and Benefit Analysis of Waste-to-Energy

Group Members:
Syed Muhammad Tariq Shah (6222300060)
Ibrar Ul Haq (6222040013)
Introduction
Electricity can be produced by burning "municipal solid waste" (MSW) as a fuel. MSW power
plants, also called waste to energy (WTE) plants, are designed to dispose of MSW and to produce
electricity as a byproduct of the burning process.

The term MSW describes the stream of solid waste ("trash" or "garbage") generated by households
and apartments, commercial establishments, industries and institutions. MSW consists of everyday
items such as product packaging, grass clippings, furniture, clothing, bottles, food scraps,
newspapers, appliances, paint and batteries. It does not include medical, commercial and industrial
hazardous or radioactive wastes, which must be treated separately.

MSW is managed by a combination of disposal in landfill sites, recycling, and incineration. MSW
incinerators often produce electricity in WTE plants. This complete process of disposal of waste
into landfill site, recycling, and incineration imposes a cost. Whereas, benefits are also obtained
from producing electricity and reducing the emissions to the atmosphere in WTE plants. To
increase its benefits we have to reduce landfill and to increase recycling and incineration. There
are various policies regarding MSW in countries like US and UK related to reduction in landfill
and recycling. They impose landfill tax in order to encourage recycling and incineration. They
benefits are further increased by increasing the efficiency of WTE plants in terms of reducing the
harmful emissions to the atmosphere.

Policy in Thailand

The following national energy policy and Alternative Energy Development Plan (AEDP 2012 -
2021) have been approved by the Department of Alternative Energy Development and Efficiency,
Ministry of Energy on 30 November 2011. Thailand’s Ministry of Energy estimates that the
potential of power generation in Thailand from biomass, biogas, and MSW is 4,390 MW. Other
sources with good potential are solar and wind is 3,200 MW. There is a potential to generate
another 1,608 MW of power from hydro power. In this viewing, WTE is one form of national
energy policy. Therefore it is in the fourth rank of the national energy policy and development
plan.

Problem Statement
Currently, there are 5 WTE technologies being employed in Thailand. The 5 types of technology
are incineration, refuse derived fuel (RDF), anaerobic digestion, pyrolysis and gasification, and
landfill gas recovery. All the methods mentioned will reduce the quantity of final waste into
manageable amount as well as producing products that are environmental friendly. However, no
quantitative analysis is conducted regarding the cost and benefits of these plants. There, it is
important to conduct the detailed cost and benefits analysis of these plants in terms of both
producing electricity and reducing the emission to atmospheres. Which will affect the efficiency
if overall solid waste management system. With the help of which the policy can be modified to
increase the efficiency of the existing solid waste management system, reduce the landfill and
encourage recycling.
Objectives
1. Conduct the cost benefit analysis of the existing solid waste management system and
Waste-to-Energy Plants in Thailand.
2. Propose policy modification or new policy for reducing landfill, increasing recycle,
increasing the conversion of waste to electricity and reducing emissions to atmosphere.