"INCINERATORS, WRONG INVESTMENT"/ Baumann: It was seen that they are not related to waste, but to crime

2024-09-23 14:47:00, Aktualitet CNA

"INCINERATORS, WRONG INVESTMENT"/ Baumann: It was seen that they are

Waste management in our country is far from the best practices used in European countries, where the work starts with the separation into recyclable and non-recyclable. Millions of euros paid for incinerators that would process the waste have so far produced only a few arrests and no improved effects on the environment. In an interview for CNA TV, the Circular Economy expert, Lulzim Baumann, emphasized that at the moment incinerators have no future in Albania, as the production of energy through combustion has proven that it cannot work and that investments for incinerators are wrong.

"INCINERATORS, WRONG INVESTMENT"/ Baumann: It was seen that they are

"The production of energy from waste through burning or an incinerator cannot work even though many millions of euros were spent on something like that. We have all followed the scandals related to incinerators. We are talking about hundreds of millions of euros being thrown towards a wrong investment. The incinerator in Elbasan, which cost 7-80 million euros if I'm not mistaken, is not working. It is an investment that has recently shown that it has nothing to do with waste management, many mafias were hiding behind this investment, so it is an investment totally related to corruption and the mafia rather than waste management future in Albania, at least for the moment. Many times they have compared cases with Germany. In Germany there are incinerators, but not in Albania. Also there, waste has been separated for 30 or 40 years, and in order for it to go to incineration, the waste must first be separated. With as much money as has been thrown in Tirana for the incinerator, I think that the entire waste management could have been systematized in Tirana, maybe even for the region of Tirana. What I always try to say is that any waste that goes to landfill is money wasted, except it pollutes us. Losing money by getting dirty, this only happens in Albania. In the meantime, we could use that waste to make money and also keep the environment clean," said Baumann.

In the absence of capacities for waste treatment, Buamann, among other things, added that burning in nature is the most harmful method for human health. / CNA