Biorefineries better than incinerators

IT IS disappointing that plans for an incinerator at Poolbeg are still being considered. Incineration is the worst option, economically and environmentally, for handling organic non-toxic municipal ‘waste’.

All waste materials should be evaluated in the context of their value as biofuel and as feedstocks for biorefineries.

The University of Limerick has advocated for some time the technologies which now exist for producing ethanol and various valuable platform chemicals from organic wastes.