Assessment of the Environmental Values of Waste-to-Energy in the Gaza Strip

The Gaza Strip faces a chronic solid waste (SW) management and electricity shortage problem as a result of fifty years of political instability in the area coupled with a high population growth rate, an unhealthy economic condition, and limited land and energy resources. The option to develop a waste to energy (WTE) facility to manage SW and to alleviate the electricity shortage has not been previously investigated for the Gaza Strip. This paper assesses the potential environmental and economic benefit of a WTE facility on the context of two scenarios: Mass Burn and Mass Burn with Recycling up to the year 2035. The analysis shows a potential to generate approximately 77.1 Megawatts (MW) of electricity based on a Mass Burn scenario and approximately 4.7 MW of electricity based on a Mass Burn with Recycling scenario. These values are approximately 10.3% and 0.63% respectively of the projected peak electricity demand of 751 MW in 2035. The research identifies the potentially significant environmental benefit of developing WTE facilities within the Gaza Strip. The Mass Burn with Recycling scenario shows a potential greenhouse gases emission reduction of approximately 92 thousand metric tons carbon equivalent (MTCE) per year, and landfill area savings of about 94 % in comparison to complete landfilling in 2035. Further investigation is recommended to evaluate the socio-economic impacts and technical feasibility of the development of WTE facilities for the Gaza Strip.