PROJECT REPORT – WASTE-TO-ENERGY
Transcontinental combustion
Hitachi Zosen Inova’s Istanbul waste-to-energy facility will process up to one million tonnes of waste per annum.
CARSTEN KAISER AND MARC STAMMBACH OF HITACHI ZOSEN INOVA SPEAK TO WASTE MANAGEMENT REVIEW ABOUT TECHNOLOGY INSTALLED ON EUROPE’S LARGEST WASTE-TO-ENERGY FACILITY IN ISTANBUL.
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traddling Europe and Asia, Turkey’s capital is a transcontinental centre known for colourful labyrinth-like bazaars and the iconic Blue Mosque. While perhaps not as recognisable outside of Turkey, within the country, Istanbul is also identified by the tragic Umraniye-Hekimbasi open dump explosion. The explosion, which took place in April 1993, was the result of unsustainable and unregulated solid waste dumping, with the site receiving more than 2000 tonnes of uncompacted solid waste each day. The event engulfed 11 houses, causing the death of 39 people.
In a recent op-ed for the DailySabah, Mehmet Emin Birpınar, Turkey’s Deputy Environment Minister, argued that the event spurred major environmental reform. Specifically, Mr Birpınar highlighted that in the preceding 25 years, Turkey’s recycling rate rose from one to 12 per cent. While the country is now working towards “zero waste” legislation, much of that initial environmental reform focused on sanitary and well-regulated landfills. Despite this representing an initial step in the right direction after widespread open dumping, the solution is now no longer sustainable. Istanbul’s population is growing,
according to Carsten Kaiser, Hitachi Zosen Inova (HZI) Senior Sales Manager, and putting pressure on the city’s existing landfills. He adds that throughout the region, landfills are close to capacity. To address the problem, the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality engaged HZI and Turkish construction partner Makyo to construct and operate a waste-to-energy (WtE) facility for municipal solid waste. Once complete, the plant will be the first to operate in Turkey and the largest of its kind in Europe. “The facility will process up to one million tonnes of waste per annum and will be located close to Istanbul’s
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