Waste disposal

Waste disposal is a key element of a functional circular economy. Waste management requires sinks for the deposition of pollutants and contaminants and the exfiltration of unsuitable materials. Deposition should be kept to a minimum, be free of hazards and comply with ambitious environmental standards. Any remaining potential hazards at the disposal site are examined and assessed in environmental impact studies.

Waste disposal measures are in no way exempt from efforts for the realisation of valuable waste potentials. For instance, mechanobiological waste treatment plants allow the exploitation of minor material flows for material or energetic recovery. Waste incarceration plants may be optimised with high energy standards and full use of arising solid residues (metals, slags, flue gas residues). However, some form of residual waste material flow cannot be entirely avoided. Ultimately, these waste materials have to be characterised and allocated to different deposit classes according to their harmful potential. Old landfill bodies are anthropogenic resources that landfill mining can access.