Centre for Environmental Policy, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK.
Sci Total Environ. 2012 Apr 15;423:1-7. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2012.01.048. Epub 2012 Mar 6.
The EU Landfill Directive requires Member States to reduce the amount of biodegradable waste disposed of to landfill. This has been a key driver for the establishment of new waste management options, particularly in the UK, which in the past relied heavily on landfill for the disposal of municipal solid waste (MSW). MSW in the UK is managed by Local Authorities, some of which in a less conventional way have been encouraging the installation and use of household food waste disposal units (FWDs) as an option to divert food waste from landfill. This study aimed to evaluate the additional burden to water industry operations in the UK associated with this option, compared with the benefits and related savings from the subsequent reductions in MSW collection and disposal. A simple economic analysis was undertaken for different FWD uptake scenarios, using the Anglian Region as a case study. Results demonstrated that the significant savings from waste collection arising from a large-scale uptake of FWDs would outweigh the costs associated with the impacts to the water industry. However, in the case of a low uptake, such savings would not be enough to cover the increased costs associated with the wastewater provision. As a result, this study highlights the need for policy intervention in terms of regulating the use of FWDs, either promoting them as an alternative to landfill to increase savings from waste management, or banning them as a threat to wastewater operations to reduce potential costs to the water industry.
欧盟垃圾填埋指令要求成员国减少生物降解废物的填埋量。这是建立新的废物管理选择的关键驱动因素，特别是在英国，过去英国严重依赖垃圾填埋来处理城市固体废物（MSW）。英国的 MSW 由地方当局管理，其中一些地方当局以不太传统的方式鼓励安装和使用家用食物垃圾处理装置（FWD），作为将食物垃圾从垃圾填埋场转移的一种选择。本研究旨在评估与该选择相关的英国水行业运营的额外负担，与随后减少 MSW 收集和处置带来的收益和相关节省进行比较。针对不同的 FWD 采用情况，使用盎格鲁地区作为案例研究，进行了简单的经济分析。结果表明，大规模采用 FWD 带来的废物收集方面的大量节省将超过与水行业相关的成本。然而，在采用率较低的情况下，这些节省不足以覆盖与提供废水相关的增加成本。因此，本研究强调了政策干预的必要性，无论是通过将 FWD 作为替代垃圾填埋的方式进行推广，以增加废物管理的节省，还是将其作为对废水处理的威胁进行禁止，以减少水行业的潜在成本。
