The promotion of energy from waste
The results of the study suggest that incineration is also a satisfactory option for managing paper and card waste
which would otherwise be sent to landfill. Paper and card are characterised by a relatively high heating value,
similar to wood. Incineration is especially advantageous if both electricity and heat are generated (better
efficiency) and substitute for electricity and gas from the public grid. The benefits are all the more important for
the UK where the electricity mix relies mostly on coal and gas (see section 4.1.2). However, currently most UK
incinerators only generate electricity (DEFRA, 2007 (a)). The benefits of energy recovery would be higher if future
energy from waste plant generated electricity and heat, provided that infrastructure and markets were in place to
utilise this heat. District heating is not widespread in the UK so there is a lack of infrastructures to ensure heat
distribution. Alternatively, the benefits of energy recovery could diminish if the efficiency of the fossil energy
generation technologies increases in the few next years, and they are also used to generate heat and power.
The conducted study highlights that landfill disposal is the worst alternative for paper and card due to the
formation and release of methane during degradation. The percentage of paper and card being landfilled is
destined to be reduced in the near future because of the Landfill Directive. However, in the UK landfill disposal is
likely to remain the marginal end-of-life route and priority should thus be given to landfills with high biogas
recovery efficiency. Indeed the results of the study highlight that the environmental burden of paper landfill
disposal can be significantly reduced by selling the generated electricity to the grid, thus reducing the use of fossil
fuels. Due to the biogas valorisation, the results of the comparison for depletion of natural resources show that
the difference between landfill, energy recovery and recycling is not as significant as intuition would suggest.
Summing up
The following table sums up how the UK waste sector contribute to make the relevant end-of-life option more or
less beneficial from an environmental point of view and how future trends could change the picture. An arrow up
means that the given context element could contribute to increasing the environmental benefits of the concerned
end-of-life option. On the contrary, an arrow down means that this element could contribute to make the
concerned end-of-life option less beneficial from an environmental point of view. Tables built on this principle are
used to sum up the findings for each fraction.
Table 90 Influence of the UK context on the various end-of-life options for paper waste managementInfluence^ on^ the^ end‐of‐life^ options^
Elements^ of^ the^ UK^ context^ Recycling^ Incineration^ Landfill^
1 Energy mix based on fossil fuels ↘ ↗ ↗
2 Paper production based on low carbon energy ↘
3 Co‐mingled paper collection ↘
Sector‐
based
elements
4 Lack of domestic demand for recycled products ↘
5 Low carbon energy mix (^) ↗ ↘ ↘
6 Increased use of cogeneration (^) ↗
Future
trends
7 Improved recycling technology (^) ↗
↗
Could contribute to make the concerned end‐of‐life option more beneficial from an
environmental point of view↘
Could contribute to make the concerned end‐of‐life option less beneficial from an
environmental point of view1 Currently, the UK energy mix is mainly based on fossil fuels. Therefore the energy savings brought by incineration or landfills
make this option advantageous while on the contrary recycling is associated with energy consumption.
2 Since the UK virgin paper is essentially produced in Scandinavia, based on low carbon energy, avoiding the production of
virgin paper via recycling does not bring so many environmental benefits.
3 Co-mingled paper collection results in a relatively low quality of the collected paper and thus limits the environmental benefits
of recycling.
4 The lack of domestic demand for recycled paper products does not encourage the development of the paper recycling
channels.
5 If in the future the energy produced no longer replaces fossil energy, the advantages would not be as high as today. On the
contrary, the energy used for recycling would generate fewer environmental impacts.