Análise preliminar da implantação de unidade de recuperação energética em alternativa ao aterramento de resíduo sólido urbano em Belo Horizonte

Abstract

Through the last decades, the contemporany society has shown an increase in production of municipal solid waste (MSW). This condition can be explained by the population growth and the economy based on large consuption of non-durable goods. Waste produced by population in a metropole is, for the most part, sent to processing units for final ground disposal, in landfills or dumps. The municipal waste of Belo Horizonte (BH), either organic, recyclable, from civil construction, or others, are transported to the Macaúbas Waste Treatment Center, located in the city of Sabará. In 2010 the National Solid Waste Policy was published, a federal law that, among other provisions, started requiring cities to promote correct management of solid waste setting targets and deadlines to eliminate dumps and creating means to help autorities to apply the policy effectively. As an alternative for the correct treatment of urban solid waste emerges as an option the Waste to Energy (WTE) Power Plants – waste incineration plants whose product is energy. This solucion is widely used in European countries, China and Japan, with technology known to be effective for what it proposes: waste destruction as well electric and thermal energy generation. This document aims to understand the dynamics of urban solid waste management: production, collection, transportation and destination, in the city of Belo Horizonte; and analyzing an alternative treatment of MSW in an energy recovery unit. To achieve the goals of this paper, data from the geographical information system of BH and existing contracts between the municipal administration and service providers were assessed, been considered the population residing in the administrative regions, amount of domestic waste produced, transportation between residential collection and the landfill, as well as the costs associated with the services provided. The feasibility of implementing a WTE plant from the distributed energy systems context in the urban area of Belo Horizonte, was evaluated in order to reduce the financial and environmental costs of daily transport of solid waste, producing energy from a renewable source and minimizing the emission of greenhouse gases by the landfill. Based on results obtained for the current MSW management system and the alternative destination for a WTE plant, it was possible to establish a comparison that demonstred economic and financial equivalence between the two municipal solid waste treatment solutions.