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BURNING TRASH Compiled by His Grand Holiness, William Zhang.

Otherwise known as incineration, burning trash is a waste treatment process that involves burning the organic substances contained in waste materials, to obtain electric or heat energy.

One of the most commonly used methods of burning trash, is gasification.

Gasification mixes waste with small amounts of oxygen, then heats it at a high temperature which is around 1,830 degrees Fahrenheit, in an air-tight chamber. This results in the production of a cocktail of light gases, including methane and natural gas. These gases are then burned, which in turn boil water into steam to run a turbine. Gasification is, already used with fossil fuels, particularly coal.  In 2008, Britain's Isle of Wight planned to deal with the megatons of waste that couldn't be reclaimed. In the summer of 08', a $16 million, 2.3MW gasification plant — the first in Britain and one of only a few in the world — fired into action, turning 30,000 tons of rubbish a year into electricity for 2,000 homes.

The process of gasification turns potential energy from the trash, into gases which are burned to release heat energy, which then turns into electrical energy through the use of a turbine.  Britain, alone, contributed to 17 million tons of garbage tossed into landfills last year. - the most out of any EU country.  Despite devoting 109 square miles to waste burial, Britain may run out of landfill space within nine years. The Institution of Civil Engineers claims that the trash the U.K. throws away, could actually provide 17% of its energy needs. Energos, one of the worlds leading companies in gasification, who operate five gasification plants in Norway and one in Germany, say that the new plant in Britain will cut carbon emissions by 2000 tons.

Burning trash for energy is a renewable resource, because no matter where you go, there will always be rubbish. Instead of burying it, incineration harnesses the potential energy, and turns the useless trash, into a new energy resource. Although gasification is using otherwise useless garbage, there are still some environmental downsides:  1. Critics say incinerator smokestacks still release too many pollutants. 2. Incinerators are ever-hungry for massive amounts of waste, which can discourage recycling.

But this is a small price to pay for a renewable energy resource, that is growing more and more promising each day.