A New Resource: The Waste-to-Energy Research and Technology Council

Despite the fact that there are over one hundred Waste-to-Energy (WTE) facilities around the country serving tens of millions of people, there are no industrial or government research centers dedicated to solving problems and improving the WTE technology. In recognition of this fact, the Waste-to-Energy Research and Technology (WTERT) Council was formed in May 2002. Its mission is to link academic researchers and professionals concerned with integrated waste management and energy recovery from wastes and promote R&D that will advance resource recovery by combustion or gasification. This paper reports on the activities of WTERT in its first year and the research directions that have been identified and initiated.