Why WtE Plants Are Essential to Poland’s Circular Economy

The Polish Association of Waste-to-Energy Producers (SPEO) has strongly rejected the position of the Association of Polish Voivodeships. The association claimed that waste incineration in Waste-to-Energy plants “does not fit into the idea of a circular economy nor is it a renewable energy source.”

The dispute arose after the Association of Polish Voivodeships responded in April 2026 to a memorandum by the National Chamber of Waste Management. The memorandum was about the role of thermal waste treatment in the circular economy and the transformation of district heating. SPEO said the voivodeships’ position is based on incorrect assumptions and contains false and misleading theses.

WtE facilities close the waste loop

Modern waste-to-energy (WtE) facilities are a necessary element of a circular economy waste management system. They are designed to significantly reduce landfilling and manage residual waste, including fractions unsuitable for recycling. Moreover, they recover energy where material recycling is not possible, SPEO announced.

SPEO emphasises that WtE facilities do not compete with recycling but close the waste management loop. A WtE plant should not, and does not, accept materials suitable for material recovery. Yet it provides a rational solution for residual, contaminated, or hazardous waste that cannot be safely returned to circulation.

Energy recovery from residual waste

According to SPEO, modern WtE facilities are technologically advanced energy recovery installations. Waste serves as a substitute fuel replacing fossil fuels. The recovered heat and electricity can supply urban district heating systems, industrial plants, public transport, and street lighting.

Poland generates approximately five million tonnes of residual municipal waste per year that is unsuitable for recycling. SPEO says waste to energy is significantly more beneficial ecologically and financially than landfilling.

Slag and ash produced from thermal waste treatment are not landfilled. In most facilities in Poland, these by-products lose their waste status. They are used entirely in the production of road aggregates and construction materials.

25 per cent of waste has no designated route

The basic circular economy goals require a minimum of 65 per cent recycling and biological processing of municipal waste. They also require restricting landfilling to below 10 per cent, a combined total of 75 per cent. This leaves 25 per cent of all generated waste without a designated management route.

Both national observation and EU experience show that 30–40 per cent of municipal waste consists of fractions unsuitable for recycling, due to their properties, technical and technological limitations, and economic conditions. For this fraction, SPEO says thermal treatment with energy recovery is the only responsible answer.

European leaders combine high recycling with WtE

Countries such as Germany, Austria, Belgium, and the Netherlands have WtE processing capacity seven to ten times higher than Poland. Yet these countries are leaders in meeting the 2035 recycling targets, which they have practically already achieved. SPEO argues this demonstrates that WtE is not a substitute for recycling but a necessary foundation for it.

Eliminating WtE from the waste management system, or reducing its role, would leave unresolved questions about millions of tonnes of residual waste. Additionally, the costs of managing them, landfill emissions, the energy security of cities, and the stability of fees paid by residents would remain issues.

Read More

• SPEO Criticises Plans For Co-Incineration of RDF in Poland
• Waste Management in Poland: Targets and Strategies
• Expansion of Waste-to-Energy Capacity in Poland
• Is The Future Of WtE In Poland Threatened By Import Ban?
• The Role of Waste-to-Energy in a Circular Economy