Solid waste, a lever for decarbonization

Reducing methane emissions from solid waste is already technically possible On 20 December 2015, a mountain of urban refuse collapsed in Shenzhen, China, killing at least 69 people and destroying dozens of buildings ( 1 ). The disaster exposed the horrible yet real idea that society’s wastes could p...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 2023-11, Vol.382 (6672), p.762-763
Main Authors: Webber, Michael E., Glazer, Yael R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Climate change
Decarbonization
Global warming
Greenhouse effect
Greenhouse gases
Paris Agreement
Solid wastes
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Summary:Reducing methane emissions from solid waste is already technically possible On 20 December 2015, a mountain of urban refuse collapsed in Shenzhen, China, killing at least 69 people and destroying dozens of buildings ( 1 ). The disaster exposed the horrible yet real idea that society’s wastes could pile up uncontrollably, directly threatening our lives. But there is another looming threat from solid waste beyond its sheer volumes and mass: the destabilizing impacts of the greenhouse gases it emits. On page 797 of this issue, Hoy et al. ( 2 ) report that rapid and large reductions of methane emissions from the world’s solid waste sector are needed to meet the global warming limit set by the Paris Agreement. The good news is that this can be achieved with existing technologies and modified behaviors.
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.adl0557