Urge Mayor Romero and City Council Members to Reject the Siting of a Waste-to-Energy Facility in Tucson

waste-to-energy plant in Europe

The Tucson Environmental and General Services department is studying over 10 project ideas for turning municipal waste into energy, fuel or fuel ingredients at the Los Reales regional landfill on the southeast side of the city.  No final decision has been made, but it is important to let City leaders know that waste-to-energy (WTE) facilities represent a false solution to our ever-growing solid waste problem. 

WTE facilities (e.g., combustion, pyrolysis, gasification and refuse-derived fuel) generate heat-trapping greenhouse gases and toxic fumes that can harm our health and planet.  These facilities also destroy valuable resources and work against the circular economy, which keeps materials in use for as long as possible. 

Much better upstream solutions exist for minimizing the generation of solid waste, including waste prevention, reuse/refill, product redesign, recycling and composting.  The City should make zero waste solutions the priority, not downstream waste management treatment facilities.  

You can sign a petition opposing a WTE facility at the Los Reales landfill on Change.org at: https://www.change.org/p/don-t-burn-it-tucson.

You can also send an email directly to Mayor Romero (Mayor.Romero@tucsonaz.gov) and your City Council member (www.tucsonaz.gov/gov/ward-maps).   

For more information on the problems with WTE technologies and more sustainable alternatives, please visit: https://sites.google.com/view/dontburnittucson/home.

Recording of Sustainable Tucson meeting: STGM Chemical Recycline with Veena Singla

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeO913M_vCA&t=1s