Four principles of garbage incineration

Garbage burning is definitely necessary. The key is not whether to burn, but how to burn. Personally, I am opposed to blindly advocating the Great Leap Forward of waste incineration brought about by everything. I am worried that if this continues, garbage incineration will blossom everywhere, and eventually the environmental risks implied by garbage incineration will be maximized.

My fears should not be groundless. Don't you see that all the cities in developed areas with strong purchasing power and the surrounding suburbs are covered with the banner of garbage incineration? In order to defend the great leap forward of waste incineration, the main burning faction often takes advertising slogans as the basis of argument and ideals as reality, praising waste incineration to the extreme. The more they spare no effort, the more suspicious their intentions are, and the more they should be alert to the self-interest drive behind garbage incineration.

Garbage incineration for power generation is not an angel but also a necessary evil. Therefore, when human beings have to deal with garbage incineration power generation because of the garbage crisis, they also have to put a halter on garbage incineration power generation like putting power in a cage. No matter how severe the garbage crisis is, incineration power generation can not be the first choice, but can only occupy an auxiliary position, and can only be a supplementary means after conventional means such as landfill, composting and sorting are exhausted. Only in this way can the environmental risk of incineration be controlled to a minimum.

In other words, don't be too idealistic and romantic about garbage incineration power generation, but be as cautious as possible. This utmost prudence should at least be reflected in the following four basic principles: sound garbage classification is a prerequisite for garbage incineration power generation and an insurmountable historical stage, which has long been recognized by society. The question is not whether there is such social knowledge and public literacy, but whether the city government has this determination. Garbage sorting requires a strong infrastructure. As pointed out by the media, the primary reason why Japanese people do fine garbage sorting is that their garbage sorting and transportation facilities are good. After the 1990s, the total amount of garbage in Taipei dropped sharply, also because of the thoughtful service of garbage sorting facilities. Americans have a strong sense of garbage sorting because their garbage sorting and transportation schedules are clear at a glance. Only the government can provide the strong infrastructure needed for garbage sorting. No matter how strong the public's impulse to classify is, there is no possibility of landing without the strong infrastructure provided by the government.

Therefore, the waste sorting experiments in many cities have achieved nothing, and the board can't all hit the public's ass, which is attributed to the so-called public literacy. The review is whether the municipal government has done due diligence on infrastructure. If it doesn't do its duty, it shows that it is at least half-hearted, if not insincere, in garbage sorting. Half-hearted can't do anything big, classification is useless, and public funds are wasted. It should be accountable to the municipal government and cannot be used as a reason for the municipal government to burn garbage to generate electricity. At a seminar, Nie Yongfeng, a flag-bearer of the main burning faction and a professor from Tsinghua University, cheered: "The garbage incineration power generation in China will usher in a golden age in 2008 -20 15." Why can't he help it? A person in charge of China Urban Construction Research Institute revealed the secret at that time: due to the relatively stable return, garbage incineration facilities were favored by investors and easier to market; Especially in the current severe global economic situation, more investors turn their attention to the energy field and environmental protection field in order to seek long-term and stable return on investment. (Quoted from China Solid Waste Network on April 26th)

Needless to say, marketization is an obvious trend of waste incineration power generation in China. However, huge environmental risks are doomed. In China with special national conditions, waste incineration power generation is not suitable for marketization. Developed countries can be marketized, because both power and capital in developed countries are severely restricted, and we don't have such an institutional environment. If the garbage disposal giant allied with power does not assume social responsibility, society can only do nothing, and the ultimate consequence is that society pays the bill, paying the bill with public life, health and property.

This is not a simple logical deduction, but is supported by hard facts. The reason why the National Development and Reform Commission considers adjusting the subsidy policy for waste incineration power generation is because there is widespread fraud in incineration power generation enterprises. In order to cheat power generation subsidies, they use a lot of coal and oil to generate electricity, so the incineration power plant has largely become a thermal power plant. This reflects the failure of supervision from one side.

The surface problem is so serious that the point problem is even more shocking. Some media disclosed that the cancer death rate of villagers near Guangzhou Likeng Waste Incineration Power Plant has increased sharply, which has been a resounding alarm (rumors stop at the wise). The same story happened in Shenzhen. According to media reports, the stench of private Longgang waste incineration plant can be smelled from 1.6 km away, which triggered a collective protest from local residents.

It is not difficult to imagine how out of control the waste incineration enterprises are. Zhang, a researcher at the Institute of Ecological Environment of China Academy of Sciences, pointed out in an interview with CCTV that in addition to the furnace temperature reaching the design standard, a large amount of "activated carbon" must be added to the flue gas treatment to adsorb dioxins. However, activated carbon is extremely expensive, so many waste incineration power plants cut corners when processing and testing, and only use it according to the rules. This is an important factor of pollution caused by garbage incineration. At present, the fundamental change of China's institutional environment is not a day's work. As long as the institutional environment is not fundamentally changed, supervision and corporate social responsibility cannot be implemented, and the mercenary nature of enterprises cannot be contained.

In this context, garbage incineration power generation, a high-risk industry, is handed over to the market and led by enterprises, with extremely serious consequences. Waste incineration power generation is likely to be alienated into an industry that pollutes the environment under the banner of environmental protection. If the urban garbage crisis is really serious enough to be incinerated, then this high-risk industry related to public life safety belongs to the category of public services, which should be mainly paid by the city government and should belong to the public welfare industry with full financial guarantee. Only with sufficient financial guarantee, regardless of cost, can we put an end to the industry black hole of cutting corners. This is not without precedent. The safety factor of Shenzhen Baoan Waste Incineration Plant is much larger. According to media reports, there is almost no smoke in its chimney. Government tests also show that there is almost no dioxin and other pollutants discharged from the factory, because the whole factory is invested by the government. However, its investment is much higher than that of private waste incineration plants-the cost per ton of waste incineration in Baoan Plant is 10 times that of Longgang Plant. However, finance should be taken from the people. Since garbage incineration is necessary, there is no need to care too much like Grandet. Don't burn it if you can't afford it. If you want to burn it, you must do whatever it takes to absolutely protect public life, health and property. Taipei citizens and environmental groups often go to the waste incineration plant in the middle of the night to "catch the current situation" and supervise whether there is illegal waste incineration. We are still a hundred thousand miles away from that level. There is a simple reason. Who dares to criticize the waste incineration plant for "grasping the current situation"? Watch the factory security beat you out with a stick. The fence is as deep as the sea. Who knows how it burned inside?

Therefore, whether the whole process of waste incineration can be open and transparent should also be an important indicator to determine whether waste incineration power generation is launched. In this regard, the experience of Taipei is enough for reference. It is reported that a non-governmental supervision Committee will be set up at the location of the incineration plant in Taipei; Incineration plants publish operation indicators every two months for the convenience of the public. The operating contract between the incinerator and the private operator is also published on the website of Taiwan Province Environmental Protection Bureau. The Taipei Environmental Protection Bureau has also set up video equipment on the garbage dumping platform and connected to the Internet, so citizens can check what is burning in the furnace at any time.

No one monitors environmental risks more impulsively than potential victims, and no monitoring is more credible than potential victims themselves. At the moment when the credibility of waste incineration power generation is seriously lacking, China must be fully open to the whole society, especially to the residents in the communities where its potential victims live, and accept the all-round supervision of the whole society, especially the residents in its communities, so as to truly win the trust of people and truly reassure people. The inevitable environmental risk of garbage incineration power generation will obviously bring some losses to the property of the surrounding residents, and the losses should be compensated. It cannot be said that for the so-called overall interests, for the interests of the majority, a few people lose and lose. The inviolability of private property means not only that private individuals are inviolable, but also that the interests of the whole and the majority are inviolable. Interests can only be replaced and cannot be sacrificed, no matter whether the majority or a few people are involved. This principle must be rigid, otherwise, through the so-called overall interests and the interests of the majority, he may be sacrificed today and you may be sacrificed tomorrow. This is just a question of probability, and no one can guarantee that he will not be overshadowed by this probability all his life. Therefore, if the tragedy of his sacrifice and infringement is not stopped today, it may be your turn tomorrow, and then you will not be wronged.

At this point, there are still many misunderstandings. The behavior of residents around the incineration plant to defend their rights is often condemned by some moralists. It seems shameful that they obstruct public projects only for their own self-interest. Today, with the development of market economy and the application of property law for many years, it is not worth refuting the hypocrisy and absurdity of disciplinarians from such an angle. Of course, the residents around the incineration plant are fighting for their rights, but objectively they are fighting for the rights of all citizens. What are the moral and legal losses! If they don't even know how to cherish their civil rights and property rights, then cynicism is their real shame and the shame of the whole country.

The above four items are considered as the basic social support conditions for waste incineration power generation. The theory of waste incineration power generation is controversial, and there are differences in technology. It will not be effective to discuss the right and wrong of waste incineration power generation only in theory and technology. Even if garbage incineration is a flower in developed countries, this flower has specific soil and air. Aside from its specific soil and air, we are eager to copy flowers only because they are so beautiful. How do you know that genetic variation will not exceed Huai?

urgent matter

It's not a question of whether or not to burn it, or where to burn it. The urgent task can only be based on the sociological vision and special national conditions, focusing on how to burn garbage, that is, under what social conditions it should be burned, and whether we have fully met these conditions. This attitude is truly responsible for life and history.