waste-to-energy incineration

What happens when communities say no to burning waste, and yes to better solutions?

Across Europe and beyond, people are coming together to oppose waste incineration and to protect their communities, their health and the resources we all depend on.

As part of the Global Week of Action to Stop Incineration, join us for an inspiring conversation with local activists from Croatia, Nigeria, France, and Italy. They will share their experiences of organising in their communities, raising awareness and challenging plans for new incinerators or the expansion of existing facilities.

From local campaigns to broader movements for zero waste, these stories show that communities can make a difference and that there are better ways to manage our resources than burning them.

Local voices, shared experiences

The webinar will bring together activists working in very different contexts, but with a shared message: waste should not be seen as fuel. Our speakers will share:

How local communities are coming together to oppose incineration projects.
What motivates people to get involved and build local support.
The challenges activists face, and the strategies that can help overcome them.
How local campaigns can connect with wider movements for zero waste.
What we can learn from communities creating a different vision for how we manage waste.

By: OUREYA RAISSA

From April 18 to 26, 2026, I participated in the Zero Waste Academy: Community Zero Waste Program Implementation Course, hosted by GAIA Asia-Pacific and the Mother Earth Foundation in Manila, the vibrant capital of the Philippines. The event brought together people committed to building a world beyond throwaway culture.

For nine intensive days, activists, experts, practitioners, and young leaders from around the world came together to learn, exchange ideas, and develop practical approaches for a fair and sustainable transition to zero waste. I felt deeply honoured to be part of this experience.

Exploring the global challenges to achieve zero waste

The Zero Waste Academy was far more than a typical conference. It was a safe learning space rooted in the realities of local communities that are too often left out of mainstream discussions. Conversations were open and honest, critical thinking was encouraged, and the mix of participants from Asia and Africa created a powerful exchange of perspectives. It was a rare environment where ideas were tested, assumptions challenged, and learning happened both in the sessions and in conversations with fellow participants. For me, it was a transformative experience.

Over the course of the week, several key issues were explored:

False solutions under scrutiny: the case of waste-to-energy

One of the sessions focused on false solutions, especially Waste-to-Energy (WtE), which burns waste to produce energy. Although some industry and institutional actors present it as a climate solution, the session clearly showed its limits.

Using evidence and data, speakers explained that waste incineration releases greenhouse gases and toxic pollutants, destroys recyclable materials, and diverts investment away from truly circular systems. Rather than solving the waste crisis, Waste-to-Energy reinforces the same cycle of overproduction and disposal that zero-waste principles seek to end. This is a lesson I will carry into my future advocacy.

A just transition: leaving no one behind

Another major theme was the idea of a just transition. I was especially moved by the recognition given to waste pickers and by the acknowledgement of their strength and resilience. These workers, mostly women, collect, sort, and sell materials every day, making an essential contribution to the recycling system.

Organic waste: an overlooked opportunity

Organic waste accounts for more than half of household waste in much of the Global South, yet it is still often dumped or burned, producing significant methane emissions. The Academy dedicated several sessions to this issue, especially community composting solutions.

For African stakeholders, these approaches are particularly relevant: they are low-cost, adapted to local realities, create jobs, reduce emissions, and improve both soil fertility and food security.

Reuse and its benefits: reclaiming control of our resources

Reuse was also a major topic of discussion. In response to the growing volume of single-use products, many local initiatives are already adopting deposit-return systems and reusable packaging as practical alternatives. What struck me most was that these solutions do not depend on advanced technology. They depend primarily on cultural change and community mobilisation—qualities that Africa already has in abundance.

MRFs: seeing zero waste in practice

One of the week’s highlights was the visit to Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) in several barangays in Manila. These community-based sorting and recycling centres, often modest in scale, show what zero waste can look like in practice. They recover materials, return them to the local economy, and create decent jobs within neighbourhoods.

Seeing these facilities in operation convinced me even more that zero waste is not just a theory for wealthy countries. Communities with limited resources in the Global South are already making it work. It may not be perfect, but it is real, practical, and effective.

What I am bringing back to Lomé

I am returning to Lomé with more than memories—I am returning with a plan.

What I saw in Manila strengthened my determination to help advance a Zero Waste Plan for Lomé. The plan would be practical, community-driven, and rooted in the realities of our neighbourhoods. It would focus on creating local MRF centres, recovering organic waste, supporting informal recycling workers, and involving young people as agents of change.

This effort cannot be built alone. It will require young people, community actors, municipal authorities, and everyone who believes, as I do, that Lomé can become a leading zero-waste city in Francophone Africa. Zero waste is possible. It does not need to be perfect. It simply needs to begin.

The government cannot address waste alone. As civil society organisations, we also have a responsibility to help build a zero-waste future. – Raïssa Oureya

BY: OUREYA RAISSA, NGO Jeunes Verts, Togo, GAIA Africa Member

Manila, Philippines – Environmental network Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) and Break Free From Plastic (BFFP) in Asia Pacific representing thousands of organizations across over 93 countries, express strong disappointment over the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation’s panel on November 5, 2025 during the 67th Ramon Magsaysay Awards Festival Season in cahoots with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) which further peddle false solutions to the pollution crisis

In a letter addressed to the foundation, the giant environmental network said that this year’s Ramon Magsaysay Awards, which used to be a space for celebrating environmentally sustainable and just solutions, served as a dagger struck into the hearts of communities fighting for their rights to clean air, soil, water, health, and the environment. These communities have firsthand experience of the toxic impacts of waste-to-energy (WtE) plants, and are fighting to have these removed.

During the event, awardee Ms. Shaahina Ali described incineration as a “transitional solution” to plastic pollution. Ali also said that newer WtE technologies address pollution concerns and that these facilities offer the best option for the Maldives. These messages are promoted by international financial institutions (IFIs), such as the ADB, to legitimize incineration as a formal waste management method in the region. WtE releases high levels of greenhouse gases that worsen the climate crisis. It also threatens food and water systems, damages ecosystems, and exposes communities to rising sea levels and more extreme weather.

The civil society organizations emphasize that ADB remains one of the largest financiers and policy architects promoting WtE incineration in the Asia Pacific. Since the Paris Agreement was adopted by countries in 2015, ADB provided USD 15.3 billion to 49 projects with incineration components and policy reforms institutionalizing false solutions such as plastic credits through loans, grants, equity investments, and technical assistance. ADB’s financing for plastic pollution locks countries into a linear and unsustainable model of plastic production.

“In a world where urgent actions are needed to address plastic pollution, debt burdens, and limiting the rise in global temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius, we urge the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation to inhibit from staging unethical, inappropriate, and unjust development alternatives,” said Mayang Azurin, Deputy Director for Campaigns at GAIA Asia Pacific. “RMAF must instead set the development discussions toward empowering community solutions moving toward transformative shifts instead of echoing the agenda of international financial institutions like the ADB and World Bank.”

Civil society organizations also urged the award-giving body to seriously rethink the narratives of what sustainable and just solutions are celebrated in the region by recognizing community voices, and respecting science-based facts and policy directions against what is peddled as solutions by IFIs such as the ADB. International groups offered cross-learning with the award-giving body to navigate complex but solvable problems without resorting to false solutions.

Civil society leaders from the region have this to say:

Marian Ledesma, Zero Waste Campaigner, Greenpeace Philippines, said:

“It is disappointing to see a prestigious award for ethical leadership promote waste-to-energy. This is a false solution that harms communities and distracts from real action on plastic pollution. RMAF must widen its understanding of the crisis. Downstream fixes are outdated, and burning waste is dangerous. Communities and institutions across Asia have already shown that upstream solutions, such as reduction and reuse systems, not only work, but bring benefits to communities.”

Arpita Bhagat, Plastic Policy Officer, GAIA Asia Pacific, said:

“Asian values call for living in balance with nature. Incineration, plastic credits, and offsets do the opposite. They let industries keep polluting while communities bear the cost. These approaches echo a colonial mindset that treats Asia as a dumping ground. By elevating ideas that fuel toxic pollution and the linear take-make-waste model, RMAF undermines the grassroots fight for environmental justice.”

Wahyu Eka Styawan, Campaigner of WALHI Jawa Timur:

“WALHI regrets RMAF’s collaboration with the Asian Development Bank, which is funding waste-to-energy projects in the region. With air quality monitoring support from GAIA, we found PM2.5 spikes around the Benowo WtE plant that exceeded WHO guidelines. This matches Surabaya’s high respiratory infection rates. WtE has worsened environmental and health risks, and ADB’s role in RMAF indirectly reinforces a harmful project.”

Atty. Zelda Soriano, Founder and Executive Director, Community Legal Help and Public Interest Centre (C-HELP), said:

“RMAF has long honored leaders tackling environmental challenges through community-driven, sustainable solutions. This legacy reflects its core mission. Endorsing waste-to-energy technologies promoted by institutions like the ADB would break from that tradition. It would signal a shift away from genuine, people-centered efforts toward approaches that do not advance real sustainability.”

Shey Levita, Campaigner for False Solutions, Ecowaste Coalition:

“It is troubling that RMAF would even consider waste-to-energy incineration as a solution to the plastics crisis. It is the old habit of hiding the problem instead of confronting its root causes. If RMAF wants to honor true Asian excellence, it should uplift community-led, Filipino-driven zero waste solutions, not props that enable shortcut thinking and more environmental harm.”

###

Note to Editors

Full letter to the Ramon Magsaysay Awards Foundation with the full list of signatories is available here.

Press contacts:

Robi Kate Miranda, robi@no-burn.org, Communications Officer for Campaigns, GAIA Asia Pacific
Eah Antonio, eah@breakfreefromplastic.org, Senior Communications Officer, #BreakFreeFromPlastic Asia Pacific

GAIA is a worldwide alliance of more than 1,000 grassroots groups, non-governmental organizations, and individuals in over 90 countries. With our work, we aim to catalyze a global shift towards environmental justice by strengthening grassroots social movements that advance solutions to waste and pollution. We envision a just, zero waste world built on respect for ecological limits and community rights, where people are free from the burden of toxic pollution, and resources are sustainably conserved, not burned or dumped.

#BreakFreeFromPlastic is a global movement envisioning a future free from plastic pollution. Since its launch in 2016, more than 3,500 organizations representing millions of individual supporters around the world, have joined the movement to demand massive reductions in single-use plastics and push for lasting solutions to the plastic pollution crisis. BFFP member organizations and individuals share the values of environmental protection and social justice, and work together through a holistic approach to bring about systemic change. This means tackling plastic pollution across the whole plastics value chain—from extraction to disposal—focusing on prevention rather than cure and providing effective solutions. www.breakfreefromplastic.org

As we mark GAIA’s twenty-fifth year, we’re taking a moment to honour the people, movements, and everyday acts of courage that shaped this global community. What began as a shared refusal to accept toxic, extractive systems has grown into a vibrant network pushing for justice, circularity, and care at every level.

To celebrate this milestone, Dr. Shahriar Hossain of the Environment and Social Development Organization (ESDO) in Bangladesh offers a poem that traces the quiet power of collective work from the ground up. It’s a reflection on how far we’ve come and a reminder of the roots that hold us steady as we face the years ahead.

Below is his tribute to the movement and everyone who has carried it forward.

Tide & Root: From Ash to Apples

Shahriar Hossain, Ph.D.

Twenty-five years — GAIA rose like tide and root,

quiet muscle, steady pulse, reclaiming our roots.

We flipped ash into seed; we refused to burn tomorrow;

we taught our children: refuse is not fate, but work to borrow.

Neighbors raised banners, set the kitchen table high —

grandmothers with compost scoops, youth mapping every by way.

We unmasked the smoke with stories, petitions, and hands;

we seized what was wasted and re-domesticated care in our lands.

From alley pots to island sands, our palms learned to sort and heal;

we composted histories and pressed them back into the soil.

Rubble of neglect became rich loam, rivers mended, markets steadied,

incinerators weakened as knowledge walked door to door, ready.

Repair, reuse, refuse — we rewove the small economies of home;

each household a workshop, each neighbor a step toward the comb.

A global choir — elders, youth, frontline keepers — braided practice into law;

this resistance cleared the air, cleaned our memory, demanded circular justice for all.

Twenty-five years of grit and grace: ash to apple, shame to neighborhood power.

Let the next decades be fuller, kinder, rooted in each home and hour.

Whole and together — we commit, we keep, we rise: we are the work, the promise, the morning’s steady prize.

Quezon City, Philippines – The Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) Asia Pacific joined civil society allies in a press briefing on the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Climate Scorecard to raise concern over the bank’s continued support for harmful waste-to-energy (WtE) incineration. Groups called out the Bank for failing to align its energy policy with real climate solutions and community needs.

In GAIA’s monitoring, ADB remains the biggest backer of incineration in the region. Since the Paris Agreement in 2015, the Bank has financed 49 projects with incineration or co-incineration components. These projects amount to USD 15.3 billion. Climate Policy Initiative also reports that more than 94 percent of climate finance for methane abatement in the waste sector still goes to incineration. This reflects a troubling pattern. Money intended for climate action is being diverted to technologies that worsen pollution and drain public resources.

Brex Arevalo, Climate and Anti-Incineration Campaigner of GAIA Asia Pacific, underscored the urgency. “Incinerators remain polluters no matter the technology. While incineration reduces waste volume, the remaining ash, wastewater, and emissions are hazardous and must still be disposed of in landfills. This exposes the myth that incineration eliminates the need for dumpsites. It does not. It creates even more toxic byproducts. WtE is also a poor choice for energy generation. It is among the most expensive technologies today, and it is more polluting than coal per unit of energy produced.”

Across the region, communities are already living with the consequences of ADB-backed incineration. Thilafushi in the Maldives is also being pushed toward an expensive incinerator. This concern was reinforced by Afrah Ismail of Zero Waste Maldives, who stressed, “ADB has backed waste-to-energy incineration through loans and grants for a major WtE plant in the Maldives, a climate-vulnerable archipelago whose public debt now exceeds 120% of GDP and which international financial institutions classify as being at high risk of debt distress.”

Chythenyen Kulasekaran of Centre for Financial Accountability further pointed to the broader regional failures. “The ADB should not be funding waste-to-energy incineration, which has a massive track record of failure across South Asia. All 21 waste-to-energy plants in India are highly polluting and do not comply with the environmental policy standards, as reported by the government itself.”

GAIA and its allies urged the ADB to shift course. The Bank must stop financing WtE incineration, refuse-derived fuel, chemical recycling, and co-incineration in any form. Its energy policy should uphold the waste hierarchy by supporting reduction, reuse, recycling, composting, and other proven zero waste systems.

This call was echoed by Mageswari Sangaralingam of Consumers’ Association of Penang (Malaysia), who emphasised, “By prioritising waste-to-energy incineration and critical minerals mining, the ADB’s Energy Policy thrusts clearly go against the tenets of circular economics and a real clean and just energy transition. These approaches have very high rates of material intensity use and rely heavily on resource extraction activities that result in permanent impacts to the environment and communities. No actions can offset or compensate for these damages.”

Wahyu Eka Setyawan of WALHI Jawa Timur closed with a warning drawn from Indonesia’s experience. “The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has significantly pushed waste-to-energy (WtE) incineration in Indonesia through policy influence and financing, yet evidence shows these projects harm communities and the environment. We urge the ADB to change course, as WTE incineration is not, and should not be, part of any country’s development and waste management plans.”

Press contacts:

Robi Kate Miranda, robi@no-burn.org, Communications Officer for Campaigns

###

GLOBAL STUDY PROVES INCINERATORS WORSEN CLIMATE IMPACTS WHILE COMMUNITIES PUSH FOR JUST SOLUTIONS

(SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE TRANSLATION BELOW)

[PRESSCON RECORDING]

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – 04 September 2025 — From Asia to Latin America to Africa, communities are at the frontlines of both climate impacts and the fight against false solutions in waste management. A new report released by the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA), launched this Second Climate Week in Africa, demonstrates that zero waste offers the clearest, most effective path forward—outperforming incineration and other “business-as-usual” practices in reducing long-term climate impacts.

The publication, Zero Waste as an Effective Climate Strategy: Avoiding Warming Tradeoffs from Incineration, is one of the four GAIA Technical Guidance Series for Policymakers and Financiers on Fast Action on Waste and Methane. It examines the long-term global warming impacts of three waste management approaches: open dumping and landfilling, waste-to-energy (WTE) incineration, and zero waste systems that include source separation, composting, and recycling.

Drawing from case studies in Lagos, Nigeria; Barueri, Brazil; and Quezon City, Philippines, the report applies the Solid Waste Emissions Estimation Tool (SWEET) and the FaIR climate model to project temperature outcomes through 2060. The findings are irrefutable: zero waste is the most effective and resilient strategy to reduce climate impacts from the waste sector. Unlike incineration, which trades short-term methane reductions for increased carbon dioxide emissions, zero waste delivers rapid methane cuts without creating new warming problems.

Beyond the data, the report spotlights how frontline communities in all three regions are resisting incinerator projects and advancing decentralized zero waste systems. These movements show how climate solutions can deliver environmental justice, social co-benefits, and a just transition for wastepickers.

The report comes at a pivotal moment. In Latin America, Brazil—host of the upcoming COP—is facing local battles over incineration even as it positions itself as a climate leader. In Asia, cities like Manila are at the forefront of both incineration threats and zero waste innovation. And in Africa, governments are weighing climate finance options that will determine whether communities are locked into polluting infrastructure or supported in building resilient zero waste systems.

For GAIA, the message is clear: Zero Waste offers the fastest, fairest, and most cost-effective way to cut methane emissions, and it must be at the center of global climate strategies.

SPEAKERS QUOTES:

The Global Methane Pledge is a promise we cannot afford to break. Our findings show that zero waste delivers the rapid methane reductions the world needs to meet climate targets, without the carbon penalty of incineration. If governments are serious about keeping warming under 1.5°C, zero waste must be at the heart of their plans heading into COP30. – Neil Tangri, Science and Policy Director of GAIA

Communities in Africa are rejecting incinerators because we see firsthand the toxic smoke, the health risks, and the debt they bring. We deserve climate solutions that clean our air, not poison it. Zero waste programs protect our children’s health, create real jobs, and keep decision-making in the hands of local people. – Weyinmi Okotie, GAIA Africa

Waste pickers have been the backbone of recycling in our cities for decades. As validated by these findings, they are already showing us real climate solutions. Supporting zero waste also means dignity, stable livelihoods, and a just transition for workers. Incineration does the opposite by burning this all away. – Brex Arevalo, Climate and Anti-Incineration Campaigner, GAIA Asia Pacific

As Brazil prepares to host Conference of the Parties (COP) 30, we have a chance to show the world that climate leadership means rejecting dirty technologies. Investing in zero waste can slash methane emissions, create thousands of green jobs, and align with Brazil’s pledge to protect our people and our planet. – Rafael Eudes, Zero Waste Alliance Brazil

Cutting methane quickly is critical to slowing climate change, and zero waste strategies gives us the tools to do it without causing new problems. Incinerators may look like an easy fix, but they simply swap one greenhouse gas for another and lock communities into decades of pollution. – Mariel Vilella, the Global Climate Program Director of GAIA

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Sonia Astudillo, Global Climate Communications Officer, Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) I sonia@no-burn.org I +63 917 5969286

Dan Abril, Communications Officer for Programs, GAIA Asia Pacific | dan@no-burn.org |

Ibrahim Khalilulahi Usman, Africa Communications Associate, GAIA Africa | khalil@no-burn.org

GAIA is a worldwide alliance of more than 1,000 grassroots groups, non-governmental organizations, and individuals in over 90 countries. With our work we aim to catalyze a global shift towards environmental justice by strengthening grassroots social movements that advance solutions to waste and pollution. We envision a just, zero waste world built on respect for ecological limits and community rights, where people are free from the burden of toxic pollution, and resources are sustainably conserved, not burned or dumped.

[SPANISH ]

LA ESTRATEGIA BASURA CERO ES MÁS EFECTIVA QUE LA INCINERACIÓN EN LA REDUCCIÓN DE LA CONTAMINACIÓN CLIMÁTICA

UN ESTUDIO GLOBAL DEMUESTRA QUE LAS INCINERADORAS AGRAVAN EL IMPACTO CLIMÁTICO, MIENTRAS LAS COMUNIDADES EXIGEN SOLUCIONES JUSTAS

Addis Abeba, Etiopía – 4 de septiembre de 2025 —Desde Asia hasta América Latina y África, las comunidades están en la primera línea tanto de los impactos climáticos como de la lucha contra las falsas soluciones en la gestión de residuos. Un nuevo informe publicado por la Alianza Global para Alternativas a la Incineración (GAIA), presentado durante la Segunda Semana del Clima en África, demuestra que la estrategia basura cero ofrece el camino más claro y eficaz para avanzar, superando a la incineración y otras prácticas «habituales» en la reducción de los impactos climáticos a largo plazo.

La publicación, titulada «Basura cero como estrategia climática eficaz: Evitando las compensaciones de calentamiento global derivadas de la incineración», es una de las cuatro series de orientaciones técnicas de GAIA para responsables de políticas y financiadores sobre la acción rápida en materia de residuos y metano. En ella se examinan los efectos a largo plazo del calentamiento global de tres enfoques de gestión de residuos: vertidos a cielo abierto y rellenos sanitarios, incineración para la producción de energía a partir de residuos (WTE) y sistemas de basura cero que incluyen la separación en origen, el compostaje y el reciclaje.

A partir de estudios de casos en Lagos (Nigeria), Barueri (Brasil) y Quezon City (Filipinas), el informe aplica la herramienta de estimación de emisiones de residuos sólidos (SWEET) y el modelo climático FaIR para proyectar los resultados de temperatura hasta 2060. Los hallazgos son irrefutables: basura cero es la estrategia más eficaz y resiliente para reducir los impactos climáticos del sector de los residuos. A diferencia de la incineración, que intercambia la reducción de metano a corto plazo por un aumento en las emisiones de dióxido de carbono, basura cero logra recortes rápidos de metano sin generar nuevos problemas de aumento de la temperatura.

Más allá de los datos, el informe destaca cómo las comunidades de primera línea de las tres regiones se resisten a los proyectos de incineración y promueven sistemas descentralizados de basura cero. Estos movimientos muestran cómo las soluciones climáticas pueden aportar justicia medioambiental, beneficios sociales colaterales y una transición justa para los recicladores de base.

El informe llega en un momento crucial. En América Latina, Brasil, anfitrión de la próxima COP, se enfrenta a batallas locales sobre la incineración, incluso cuando se posiciona como líder climático. En Asia, ciudades como Manila están a la vanguardia tanto de las amenazas de la incineración como de la innovación en materia de basura cero. Y en África, los gobiernos están sopesando opciones de financiamiento climático que determinarán si las comunidades quedan atrapadas en infraestructuras contaminantes o si se les apoya en la construcción de sistemas resilientes de basura cero.

Para GAIA, el mensaje es claro: Basura cero ofrece la forma más rápida, justa y rentable de reducir las emisiones de metano, y debe estar en el centro de las estrategias climáticas globales.

CITAS DE LOS PONENTES:

El Compromiso Global sobre el Metano es una promesa que no podemos permitirnos incumplir. Nuestros hallazgos demuestran que la estrategia basura cero proporciona la reducción de metano rápida que el mundo necesita para cumplir los objetivos climáticos, sin la penalización de carbono que supone la incineración. Si los gobiernos se toman en serio el objetivo de mantener el calentamiento por debajo de 1,5 °C, basura cero debe ocupar un lugar central en sus planes de cara a la COP30. – Neil Tangri, director de Ciencia y Política de GAIA

Las comunidades africanas rechazan las incineradoras porque vemos de primera mano el humo tóxico, los riesgos para la salud y la deuda que conllevan. Merecemos soluciones climáticas que limpien nuestro aire, no que lo envenenen. Los programas de basura cero protegen la salud de nuestros hijos, crean puestos de trabajo reales y mantienen la toma de decisiones en manos de la población local. – Weyinmi Okotie, GAIA África

Los recicladores han sido la columna vertebral del reciclaje en nuestras ciudades durante décadas. Tal y como demuestran estos hallazgos, ya nos están mostrando soluciones climáticas reales. Apoyar la basura cero también significa dignidad, sustento estable y una transición justa para los trabajadores. La incineración hace lo contrario al quemarlo todo. – Brex Arevalo, activista por el clima y contra la incineración, GAIA Asia Pacífico

Mientras Brasil se prepara para acoger la Conferencia de las Partes (COP) 30, tenemos la oportunidad de mostrar al mundo que el liderazgo climático significa rechazar las tecnologías contaminantes. Invertir en basura cero puede reducir drásticamente las emisiones de metano, crear miles de empleos verdes y alinearse con el compromiso de Brasil de proteger a nuestra gente y nuestro planeta. – Rafael Eudes, Alianza Basura Cero BrasilReducir rápidamente las emisiones de metano es fundamental para frenar el cambio climático, y las estrategias de basura cero nos proporcionan las herramientas para hacerlo sin causar nuevos problemas. Las incineradoras pueden parecer una solución fácil, pero simplemente sustituyen un gas de efecto invernadero por otro y condenan a las comunidades a décadas de contaminación. – Mariel Vilella, directora del Programa Climático Global de GAIA

[PORTUGUESE]

A ESTRATÉGIA DE RESÍDUO ZERO É MAIS EFICAZ DO QUE A INCINERAÇÃO NA REDUÇÃO DA POLUIÇÃO CLIMÁTICA

ESTUDO GLOBAL COMPROVA QUE INCINERADORAS AGRAVAM OS IMPACTOS CLIMÁTICOS, ENQUANTO COMUNIDADES PRESSIONAM POR SOLUÇÕES JUSTAS

Adis Abeba, Etiópia – 04 de setembro de 2025 — Da Ásia à América Latina e África, as comunidades estão na linha de frente tanto dos impactos climáticos quanto da luta contra falsas soluções na gestão de resíduos. Um novo relatório publicado pela Aliança Global para Alternativas à Incineração (GAIA), apresentado durante a Segunda Semana do Clima em África, demonstra que a estratégia de resíduo zero oferece o caminho mais claro e eficaz para avançar, superando a incineração e outras práticas “habituais” na redução dos impactos climáticos a longo prazo.

A publicação, intitulada Resíduo Zero como estratégia climática eficaz: Evitando as compensações do aquecimento global derivadas da incineração, é uma das quatro séries de orientações técnicas da GAIA para responsáveis por políticas e financiadores sobre a ação rápida em matéria de resíduos e metano. Nela são examinados os efeitos de longo prazo do aquecimento global de três abordagens de gestão de resíduos: lixões a céu aberto e aterros sanitários, incineração para a produção de energia a partir de resíduos (WTE) e sistemas de lixo zero que incluem a separação na origem, a compostagem e a reciclagem.

Com base em estudos de caso em Lagos, Nigéria; Barueri, Brasil; e Quezon City, Filipinas, o relatório aplica a Ferramenta de Estimativa de Emissões de Resíduos Sólidos (SWEET) e o modelo climático FaIR para projetar os resultados de temperatura até 2060. As conclusões são irrefutáveis: Resíduo zero é a estratégia mais eficaz e resiliente para reduzir os impactos climáticos do setor de resíduos. Ao contrário da incineração, que troca reduções de metano de curto prazo por aumento das emissões de dióxido de carbono, resíduo zero proporciona cortes rápidos de metano sem criar novos problemas de aquecimento.

Além dos dados, o relatório destaca como as comunidades da linha de frente nas três regiões estão resistindo aos projetos de incineradores e promovendo sistemas descentralizados de resíduo zero. Esses movimentos mostram como as soluções climáticas podem proporcionar justiça ambiental, benefícios sociais e uma transição justa para os catadores.

O relatório chega em um momento crucial. Na América Latina, o Brasil — anfitrião da próxima COP — enfrenta batalhas locais sobre a incineração, mesmo se posicionando como líder climático. Na Ásia, cidades como Manila estão na vanguarda tanto das ameaças da incineração quanto da inovação do resíduo zero. E na África, os governos estão avaliando opções de financiamento climático que determinarão se as comunidades ficarão presas a infraestruturas poluentes ou serão apoiadas na construção de sistemas resilientes de resíduo zero.

Para a GAIA, a mensagem é clara: o desperdício zero oferece a maneira mais rápida, justa e econômica de reduzir as emissões de metano e deve estar no centro das estratégias climáticas globais.

CITAÇÕES DOS PALESTANTES:

O Compromisso Global com o Metano é uma promessa que não podemos quebrar. Nossas descobertas mostram que resíduo zero proporciona as rápidas reduções de metano de que o mundo precisa para cumprir as metas climáticas, sem a penalidade de carbono da incineração. Se os governos estão seriamente empenhados em manter o aquecimento abaixo de 1,5 °C, resíduo zero deve estar no centro de seus planos para a COP30. – Neil Tangri, Diretor de Ciência e Política da GAIA

As comunidades na África estão rejeitando os incineradores porque vemos em primeira mão a fumaça tóxica, os riscos à saúde e as dívidas que eles trazem. Merecemos soluções climáticas que limpem nosso ar, não o envenenem. Os programas de resíduos zero protegem a saúde de nossas crianças, criam empregos reais e mantêm a tomada de decisões nas mãos da população local. – Weyinmi Okotie, GAIA África

Os catadores têm sido a espinha dorsal da reciclagem em nossas cidades há décadas. Conforme validado por essas descobertas, eles já estão nos mostrando soluções climáticas reais. Apoiar resíduo zero também significa dignidade, meios de subsistência estáveis e uma transição justa para os trabalhadores. A incineração faz o oposto, queimando tudo isso. – Brex Arevalo, ativista climático e anti-incineração, GAIA Ásia-Pacífico

Enquanto o Brasil se prepara para sediar a Conferência das Partes (COP) 30, temos a chance de mostrar ao mundo que liderança climática significa rejeitar tecnologias sujas. Investir no resíduo zero pode reduzir drasticamente as emissões de metano, criar milhares de empregos verdes e se alinhar com o compromisso do Brasil de proteger nosso povo e nosso planeta. – Rafael Eudes, Aliança Resíduo Zero Brasil

Reduzir rapidamente o metano é fundamental para desacelerar as mudanças climáticas, e as estratégias de resíduo zero nos dão as ferramentas para fazer isso sem causar novos problemas. Os incineradores podem parecer uma solução fácil, mas eles simplesmente trocam um gás de efeito estufa por outro e prendem as comunidades a décadas de poluição. – Mariel Vilella, Diretora do Programa Climático Global da GAIA

Mandaluyong City, Philippines – 14 August 2025 – Today, environmental advocates and community members gathered outside the Asian Development Bank (ADB) headquarters to oppose the Bank’s proposed revisions to its Energy Policy. The changes are being introduced in a railroaded process and could lead to increased funding for waste incineration, mining, and nuclear power development, and other contentious energy projects across Asia.

The ADB is in the final stages of its midterm Energy Policy review, with the Board expected to vote on the updated policy in October 2025. Apart from failing to prioritize waste reduction, reuse, and recycling before burning waste for energy development as committed in the Bank’s Energy Policy, it is even expanding waste-to-energy (WTE) incineration. The Bank proposes to burn a fraction of waste in power plants called co-firing biofuels. GAIA says it delays the much-needed termination of coal plants, generates more greenhouse gases (GHG) and other toxic emissions, and disincentivizes efforts towards environmentally preferred methods in the waste hierarchy.

“We looked to the ADB to set an example in climate leadership and clean energy investment — not take us backward,” said Brex Arevalo, GAIA Asia Pacific’s Climate and Anti-incineration Campaigner. “The Bank’s willingness to support these false solutions shows a shocking disregard for resource conservation, health, and climate change. How many more resources will the ADB burn on a dying planet?”

The Bank also proposes repurposing coal plants into municipal WTE incineration facilities or to burn fully with biomass materials. “Given that even problematic waste streams with toxic content like processed plastic wastes and spent tires are now being considered as biomass, the Bank is wasting scarce public funds on prolonging the agony of coal-impacted communities by turning them into WTE plants ”, Arevalo said.

Attaching carbon capture storage facilities to WTE plants is also being proposed by the Bank. Another expensive and untested technology that only delays much-needed closure of high carbon-emitting technologies, according to Zero Waste Europe.

Community concerns aren’t just unfounded fears— they are supported by hard evidence. A recent citizen-led air quality study in Surabaya, Indonesia, Ogijo, Nigeria, and Dumaguete, Philippines, found particulate matter pollution near waste-burning plants reaching up to eight times above WHO safety limits. In Dumaguete, experts estimate shutting down a local pyrolysis-gasification plant could prevent nearly 180 premature deaths annually.

“These numbers represent people’s lives—children with breathing difficulties, farmers exposed to dangerous air, waste workers in the facility, and elders living in unsafe conditions,” said Merci Ferrer, Co-convenor of War on Waste-Break Free From Plastic (WoW-BFFP) Negros Oriental. “Communities have been ignored for too long, and the time for empty promises is over.” As a result of the study of WoW-BFFP Negros Oriental, the newly elected Dumaguete Mayor, Manuel Sagarbarria, has ordered the facility to stop its operations.

And, beyond air pollution, the health risks of waste incineration extend into the escalating climate crisis. Heatwaves — periods of unusually high temperatures — are becoming more frequent and deadly, especially in densely populated areas like Delhi, India. Between 2013 and 2022, over 10,600 deaths in India were attributed to heat-related causes, disproportionately affecting vulnerable groups such as the elderly, children, and outdoor workers. WTE incinerators themselves contribute to this problem by releasing large amounts of heat during their high-temperature processes.

Protesters demanded that the ADB immediately phase out its support for WTE incineration and other false solutions and instead back proven, community-centered approaches: reducing waste before it’s created, composting organic waste to cut methane emissions, and investing in clean, renewable energy that protects both people and the environment.

In the past year alone, other international financial institutions like the World Bank and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) had terminated several proposed WTE incineration projects due to their high risks from community resistance to lack of financial viability.

“Energy Policy Review for this year, rushed by the ADB, only shows how corporate interests are being put on the pedestal over people and the planet,” said Nazareth Del Pilar of NGO Forum on ADB. “Instead of closing gaps in its policy, the Bank is slipping in dangerous provisions that deepen debt, sideline human rights, and abandon justice-centered solutions.”

PHOTOS HERE

###

Media Contacts:

Brex Arevalo, Climate and Anti-incineration Campaigner, GAIA Asia Pacific | albrecht@no-burn.org | +639983510912Dan Abril, Communications Associate, GAIA Asia Pacific | dan@no-burn.org | +639174194426

El Tercer tribunal ambiental de Valdivia, Chile, desarrolló el jueves 24 de abril la audiencia para oír los alegatos de WTE Araucanía, luego de que la empresa presentara un reclamo para anular la resolución del Comité de Ministros que rechazó el proyecto en diciembre de 2023. La resolución se entregará entre siete y diez días más.

Grupo de personas sosteniendo carteles. Al fondo el edificio de tribunales. — Habitantes de Lautaro llegaron al Tercer tribunal ambiental de Valdivia a pedir que se rechace definitivamente el proyecto de WTE Araucanía.

Valdivia, Chile – Ayer, jueves 24 de abril, se desarrolló durante casi tres horas la audiencia para oír los alegatos de la empresa WTE Araucanía en el Tercer Tribunal Ambiental de Valdivia, Chile, luego de que la empresa presentara un recurso de reclamación como resultado del segundo rechazo al proyecto por el Comité de Ministros en diciembre de 2023.

Durante la sesión, el abogado de la parte reclamante presentó dentro de sus alegatos para pedir que se acoja la reclamación de la empresa, argumentos que sugerían que la decisión del Comité de Ministros carecía de fundamentación, que desconocía normas técnicas e insistió en que la decisión tuvo una base ideológica y no técnica.

Por el contrario, el representante de la dirección ejecutiva del Servicio de Evaluación Ambiental y del Comité de Ministros, comenzó su intervención aclarando que, “No es cierto que este proyecto haya sido rechazado por razones ideológicas o políticas. Este es un caso en el cual la COEVA (Comisiones de Evaluación Ambiental) rechazó el proyecto sobre la base de 10 causales de rechazo.”, indicó además, que sí se acogieron gran parte de las alegaciones de la empresa, pero que sin embargo, el Comité de ministros mantuvo tres causales de rechazo por razones ambientales, jurídicas y técnicas:

La incorrecta evaluación de los impactos del riesgo a la salud de la población en relación a las emisiones atmosféricas.
La incorrecta evaluación de los impactos sobre población protegida.
Insuficiencia del plan de compensación.

En cuanto a la representación de la Municipalidad de Lautaro, también presentó argumentos en contra de la reclamación de la empresa WTE Araucanía, señalando que la municipalidad ha estado en contra del proyecto desde el comienzo, descartando también que sea el resultado de una supuesta influencia política, ya que dos alcaldes de corrientes políticas distintas se han manifestado en contra de la instalación de la planta de incineración. Otro de los argumentos presentados por la municipalidad, se refería al cambio en la propuesta de la empresa, que al comienzo presentó un proyecto de clasificación, sanitización, reciclaje y finalmente la aplicación del proceso térmico a uno que simplemente incinera basura sin ningún proceso previo.

Al tribunal también llegaron a manifestar su rechazo a WTE Araucanía el alcalde de Lautaro, Ricardo Jaramillo, concejales, dirigentes de comunidades Mapuche y de la Asociación Nacional de Recicladores de Chile ANARCH. Alejandra Reuss, de la ANARCH indicó, “la planta de incineración es una falsa solución a la gestión de residuos. Nosotros los recicladores somos parte de la solución, en La Araucanía tenemos más de 100 familias de recicladores de base que se verían afectadas por este proyecto.” Enrique Pizarro de la Red de Acción por los Derechos Ambientales, RADA, organización que lleva nueve años proponiendo soluciones basura cero ante falsas soluciones como la incineración, señaló, “pedimos el rechazo definitivo de WTE Araucanía para que de una vez por todas, se respeten los derechos territoriales, sociales y ambientales de las gente de Lautaro y para que no se transforme en una zona de sacrificio.”

La resolución del tribunal que podría confirmar el rechazo al proyecto o abrir un nuevo proceso de evaluación se conocerá dentro de dos semanas.

Este jueves 28 de abril se realizará la audiencia clave sobre el proyecto WTE Araucanía en el 3er Tribunal Ambiental de Valdivia. Comunidades mapuche, organizaciones ambientales y ciudadanas alertan sobre los impactos ambientales y sociales que traería la instalación del incinerador de residuos en Lautaro, y apuestan por la estrategia basura cero. En la audiencia se decidirá si el proyecto continúa rechazado o se le abre una puerta para una nueva evaluación.

Valdivia, Chile – Este jueves 24 de abril, a las 8:30 horas, se desarrollará una audiencia pública en el 3er Tribunal Ambiental de Valdivia, a raíz de la reclamación interpuesta por la empresa WTE Araucanía SpA contra el Servicio de Evaluación Ambiental a nivel central, tras el rechazo del proyecto en el Comité de Ministros en diciembre de 2023. El proyecto contempla la instalación de una planta incineradora de residuos domiciliarios en la comuna de Lautaro y, durante una década, ha generado una fuerte oposición política y ciudadana junto a múltiples advertencias desde el mundo científico y ambientalista. “Hemos conocido experiencias de otras ciudades del mundo, como Quebec (Canadá), Stanislaus en el Estado de California (EE.UU), e incluso París (Francia) donde organizaciones ambientales han podido comprobar, a largo plazo, los impactos en la salud y el medio ambiente que generan este tipo de plantas incineradoras de basura”, señala Alejandra Parra, co-fundadora de la Red de Acción por los Derechos Ambientales RADA.

El proyecto de planta WTE (waste to energy) busca tratar 600 toneladas diarias de basura a través de incineración, generando electricidad con el calor producido en el proceso. Sin embargo, esta tecnología ha sido ampliamente cuestionada por generar una electricidad poco eficiente y por sus efectos contaminantes, especialmente en zonas habitadas y agrícolas como la que se encuentra en la comuna Lautaro, región de La Araucanía, donde se pretende emplazar la planta.

Luis Tripaiñan, presidente de la comunidad mapuche de Tripaiñan, comuna de Lautaro asegura que ellos esperan que los jueces rechacen la instalación de la WTE Araucanía. “Es un proyecto que afectaría sobre todo a niños y ancianos, ya que si se instalara se contaminaría el aire y todo lo que nosotros producimos acá como comunidad. Nosotros consumimos lo que generamos en nuestros huertos familiares, el trigo, la verdura, entonces esperamos que se tome conciencia y se rechace nuevamente la instalación”, enfatizó.

Apoyo internacional

Decenas de organizaciones nacionales e internacionales de países como, Bélgica, Congo, Colombia, Argentina, México, Nueva Zelanda, EE.UU, Ecuador, Nigeria, Alemania, entre muchos otros, han difundido una carta abierta dirigida al 3er Tribunal Ambiental de Valdivia donde declaran su rechazo a las tecnologías de incineración de residuos, incluyendo Waste To Energy y cualquier forma de destrucción térmica de los materiales contenidos en los residuos. En el documento se señala que todas las organizaciones firmantes instan “al Tercer Tribunal Ambiental de Valdivia y a toda autoridad comunal, regional y nacional a rechazar la incineración de residuos como forma de gestión de los residuos y por consiguiente se promuevan soluciones reales como la implementación de la estrategia basura cero, que aborda el problema desde una perspectiva completa, promoviendo la participación ciudadana y el uso racional de los recursos naturales del planeta”

Arriba y abajo tiene lineas decorativas. Al centro contiene texto.

Impactos ecológicos y territoriales

Expertos internacionales han advertido que la aprobación del proyecto WTE Araucanía podría traer graves consecuencias ambientales en la biodiversidad de la zona. “Las incineradoras no son viables y no resuelven el problema de los residuos, ya que generan impactos negativos en la salud y el medioambiente” señala Janek Vahn, investigador y máster en Ciencias y Políticas Ambientales, según la experiencia que han tenido en países como España y Francia donde diversos estudios han alertado sobre la presencia de contaminantes en el ambiente aledaño a estas instalaciones. En este mismo sentido, señala el especialista, la Comisión Europea ha comenzado a poner su foco en la recolección selectiva y la economía circular como soluciones realmente sostenibles, por sobre la incineración.

Tras casi 9 años la audiencia crucial para el futuro ambiental de Lautaro

La audiencia de este jueves será determinante, ya que el Tribunal Ambiental deberá evaluar los antecedentes técnicos, jurídicos y sociales que fundamentaron hace casi dos años el rechazo del proyecto en el Comité de Ministros, así como los argumentos presentados por la empresa reclamante. En la instancia de este jueves 24 de abril se decidirá si el proyecto continúa rechazado o se le abre una puerta para una nueva evaluación. Recordemos que, anterior al rechazo en el Comité de Ministros, la comisión evaluadora de La Araucanía rechazó de manera unánime el proyecto por considerarlo un riesgo para la salud de la población, porque su instalación perjudicaría las actividades agropecuarias del entorno, no cumple con el plan regulador de Lautaro que establece la prohibición de la instalación de plantas de tratamiento de basura dentro del límite urbano de la comuna, y por falta de consulta indígena a las comunidades mapuche.

En este contexto, organizaciones como la Red de acción por los derechos ambientales RADA, comunidades mapuche y municipios locales han reiterado su llamado a rechazar la instalación del incinerador y avanzar hacia la estrategia Basura Cero, una gestión sustentable de residuos, basada en la reducción a través de la separación de residuos en origen, el compostaje el reciclaje y la economía circular, en lugar de tecnologías contaminantes como la incineración. “Este no es solo un problema local, sino un tema que afecta a toda la región y al país, porque es una señal sobre el tipo de desarrollo que queremos impulsar en torno a la gestión de residuos. Sabemos que los rellenos sanitarios están colapsados y a partir de la experiencia en otros países podemos conocer como la incineración no es una solución sostenible ni deseable para nuestra región ni para el país”, agrega Parra.

La RADA junto a organizaciones locales como la ONG Lafken lif, Alianza basura cero Chile, Asociación Nacional Recicladores de Chile (ANARCH) y comunidades mapuche de Lautaro, invitan a asistir a la audiencia en el 3er Tribunal Ambiental de Valdivia, ubicado en General Lagos #837, de la capital de Los Ríos con el fin de apoyar el resguardo al derecho a vivir en un ambiente libre de contaminación, consagrado en la Constitución chilena y en diversos tratados internacionales suscritos por nuestro país.

Contacto prensa

Natalia Meza Serra – Periodista RADA – +56966612203

Alejandra Parra – cofundadora RADA +56982874234
Francisca López- Periodista Alianza Basura Cero +56977587591