Waste from a burden to an asset in Saudi Arabia ? MEng. Melle B van der Meulen, Senior Consultant MHV Consultancy Ltd 2014.

Waste from a burden to an asset in Saudi Arabia ?

MEng. Melle B van der Meulen,Senior Consultant MHV Consultancy Ltd 2014

“Waste” is no waste any more

International waste lists name more and more “recycled products” no longer ‘waste’, but international free tradable PRODUCTS. Including energy out of waste.

Nearly daily former waste streams no longer objected as ‘waste’ according the international Green List and are free tradable. Paper, carton, metals, textiles etc.

Steel scrap and non-ferro materials big example since 25 years

Products are delivered to the international goods market, both regulated and non-regulated, depending of national structure.

European waste consortia very effective in international expansion due to this strategy ‘from waste to commodities’

How from ‘Waste” Management to

“Supplier of Products”

Waste doesn’t disappear

Waste can only be converted and minimized, not disappear !

CONVERSION

Re-usable materials

Energy carrier (gas)

Energy (heat/electricity)

Waste / Remains

“Recycling” is a “PRODUCTION process” with raw materials and products

Conversion of waste into

products or into energy, to be sold as ‘products’.

“Preferred pyramid” by international standards for waste

management and legislation

Conditions for recycling

A. Presence of waste (upstream market) with

Sufficient quantitiesRequired composition with enough

recyclable materialsSecured flow (guarantees on continuity)Secured flow by regulations (legislation) or

by commercial purchaseCommercial acceptable costs

B. Presence of market for products

(downstream market)

stabile quality of the products delivered secured market with multiple clients commercial market or created by regulations

(national obligations to use recycled materials in the production of goods or in public contracts (for example. C&D waste products to be applied for 20% in public contracts by contractors )

Conditions for recycling

Recycling process visualisationRecycling ‘chain’.

UPSTREAM Recycling process DOWNSTREAM

NO secured UPSTREAM or NO secured DOWNSTREAM = NO recycling commercial feasible !

Specific problems of recycling in Saudi Arabia

Scavenging is a social problem, eliminating 60-80% of the recyclables before processing in a MRF

No internal market of any importance for recycled products, traders exporting and dominate the market

Energy is too cheap (energy prices are leading for WtE)

Landfilling is too cheap (many non-engineered landfills with low costs)

Low public awareness about ‘recycling’ and ‘waste’ Low developed or non existing separate collection

(low quality of recycled products by ‘dirty MSW’)

Authorities consider waste management still as a ‘source of profit’ instead of ‘solving a burden’ ( no profitable investment based on BOT)

Cohesion with European legislation

EU Waste Directive 2008/98 EC 1:

General obliged:

1 http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/framework/

Specific: 2020 50% recycling of MSW 70 % recycling and re-

use of C&D waste

Gate fees or subsidizing products of recycling.Many PPP’s, semi-comm.

No gate fees or low gate fees and no subsidized products.Few PPP’s, majority commercial

2003

NL Denmark Belgium Sweden Germany Austria France Lux-em-

bourg

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

2003

2009

Increase in recycling, decrease in landfill 2003-2009 European Union. Overall oversight.

Construction and demolition waste in Europe

Source 1 Do it your self market, householdsSource 2 Professional market,

constructionSource 3 Professional market, demolition

Started with governmental contracts which obliged to re-use recycled materials.

Private companies followed with woodchip production out of waste wood, plastic recycling, separation at the source (construction sites) and stimulated by lower waste tariffs of the waste management companies for separate collected C&D waste.

Buildings are not ‘demolished’ anymore but ‘disassembled’ with crushing of stones and concrete at the site, sold as ‘aggregate replacing virgin materials’. Asphalt is 100% recycled.

C&D waste recycling in EU in 2009

Austria

Belgiu

m F

lander

s

Denm

ark

Germ

any

Nether

lands

France

United K

ingdom

Irela

nd

Luxem

bourg

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Source: UBA 2008 and ETC/RWM 2009

Figures show a clear shift from landfill to recycling. Incidentally to WtoE.

Figures show that gate fees or subsidizing recycled products work effective

Most successful countries with PPP constructions instead of only commercial

Legislation stimulates use of recycled materials (creating downstream market)

Waste Awareness Program fully implemented (Education, information and stimulation by rewards as return systems for several waste flows like PET, glass, paper ,electronic appliances, cars, motorbikes etcetera)

Waste from a burden to an asset in European Union?

Waste from a burden to an asset in Saudi Arabia ?

Conclusion: Yes, this is possible. There is a need for a drastic

change, on a short term. The present pollution and spillage is horrifying and anti-Islamic.

The changes to be made are big, small steps will not solve the problems but increase them

External knowledge and experience need to be applied, including training of the Saudi experts

Nation wide awareness required and religious efforts to support (Friday sermons by imams)

10 steps to establish a modern recycling environment in Saudi Arabia

1 Consider ‘waste’ as a social and religious problem to be solved (Our Holy Qur'an forbids spillage and pollution)

2 Education, information nationwide required about ‘waste’ and ‘waste prevention’ as a citizens duty

3 Leave the BOT construction for recycling facilities and consider recycling as a joint effort by a PPP for a long term. Participation makes co-responsible for success.

4 Some types of waste are always a burden, not an asset. Recognize that and subsidies the processing as a national interest (MSW, food waste, sewage sludge, hazardous waste, medical waste etcetera)

5 Combat scavenging as ‘stealing from the community’ (what it actually is in a PPP construction)

6. Stimulate the application of recycled products and where applicable, oblige these (assuring the downstream market of the processes, public contracts)

7. Ban on export of recycled products which have an internal market in Saudi itself, licensing export.

8. Subsidize the processing of non-profitable waste flows by gate fees or by subsidizing the recycled products.

9. Forbid ‘fly-tipping’ of waste (C&D waste) because risks to be mixed with hazardous waste. Filling of construction areas to be done with recycled aggregates, controlled and licensed

10.Consider some ‘waste’ as a valuable fuel, competing with fossil fuels. Attractive as a by-fuel for power plants, cement industry and similar. ( As fossil fuels are subsidized, alternative fuels have to be as well)

Thank you for your attention and a clean and sustainable Saudi Arabia

will benefit us all.

With the help of Allah we will succeed to make Saudi Arabia a

‘green’ country, an example in the Islamic world.