Won't it capture some of the carbon? Won’t it use state-of-the-art technology?
No, there’s no plan to capture the carbon, and there’s nothing sophisticated about burning all incoming materials en masse. The incinerator will not have any sorting mechanism, such as high-tech scanners that detect the molecular structure of plastics — and sorting materials is the best way to start the process of retaining their value.In fact, incineration kills innovation. Last year, in testimony before Parliament, the chief scientific advisor to DEFRA said that ‘incineration is not a good direction to go in’ because we should be finding better ways to use the value of materials, rather than turning them into carbon dioxide.