The world already does it

Not an experiment. It’s normal in the cleanest countries.

The cities we admire most for being clean and orderly don’t bury their trash: they turn it into energy. And they do it right in the middle of town.

3,100+ plants worldwide (2025) ¹
499 plants in Europe ²
~1,000 facilities in Japan ³
21 plants inside Tokyo ⁴

Real examples

Plants that are neighbors, not threats.

Copenhagen, Denmark

With a ski slope on the roof

CopenHill opened in 2017 inside the city. Its roof is a ski slope and hiking trail. In 2023 it powered about 94,000 households and heated 87,000 apartments. ⁵
Vienna, Austria

In the middle of the city

The Spittelau plant, decorated by artist Hundertwasser, has run inside Vienna for over 50 years and heats more than 60,000 households. ⁶
Tokyo, Japan

21 plants inside the city

Tokyo’s 23 wards — one of the cleanest cities on Earth — have 21 plants. Japan has around 1,000. ⁴
Sweden

Buries less than 1%

Sweden barely landfills household waste: about half becomes energy. It’s so efficient it imports waste from other countries. ⁷
Switzerland

Banned burying trash in 2000

Since 2000, Switzerland has banned landfilling combustible waste. About 30 plants turn it into energy. ⁸
Singapore

90% less volume

An island with no room for landfills. Its plants cut waste volume by about 90%, and the ash goes to an offshore landfill. ⁹

The recycling myth

The biggest recyclers use it too.

Germany recycles or composts 69% of its municipal waste, and turns much of the rest into energy. It’s not recycling or energy recovery — it’s both.¹⁰

Even what’s left gets used: Denmark reuses nearly all its bottom ash in roads and construction.¹¹

69%

of Germany’s municipal waste is recycled or composted

Much of the rest becomes energy.

Our region

Latin America has started.

In São Paulo, Brazil, the URE Barueri plant is over 88% built and will start operating in 2027: 870 tonnes of trash a day turned into 20 MW.¹²

Costa Rica, the country the world knows for protecting nature, can be among the first in the region to solve its trash problem with the same technology Europe and Asia use.

Here’s how it would work here

Europe — 499 plants
Japan — about 1,000
Brazil — Barueri, 2027
Costa Rica — Orchidean One

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Keep reading Where and when How the site is chosen, which permits are needed and how long it takes.

Not an experiment. It’s normal in the cleanest countries.

Plants that are neighbors, not threats.

With a ski slope on the roof

In the middle of the city

21 plants inside the city

Buries less than 1%

Banned burying trash in 2000

90% less volume

The biggest recyclers use it too.

Latin America has started.

Was this useful? Pass it on.

Sources