On the outskirts of the city of Shenzhen in China, a mammoth structure is being constructed. But this is not just another giant building in China. Instead, it’s set to be the largest waste-to-energy plant the world has ever seen.
With a population of 20 million people, the city produces a lot of waste: about 15,000 tonnes daily. The goal of the new plant is to process 5,000 tonnes of that waste each day and use it to generate electricity.
Part of the attraction of waste-to-energy technology is that it’s a dual-purpose solution – it rids urban areas of their growing waste problem while generating electricity as a byproduct. Still, it’s not all rosy when it comes to waste-to-energy plants. The plant has been met with opposition from local residents and environmental groups who fear it will emit dangerous levels of dioxins and other toxins. After all, burning waste does release CO2 emissions.
The architects, however, argue that the plant will do so at half the level of an average landfill site while producing energy as a byproduct. And to make their operation cleaner, the plant is installing 40,000 square meters of solar panels on its roof.
