In 1997
More than a third of the waste in Sweden is incinerated at waste-to-energy facilities, thus contributing to Swedish energy supply. Roughly a third of the household waste is recycled and composted. The rest is deposited as a landfill.
There are a total of 300 landfills.
From 59 of the landfills, gas is extracted for heating, electricity, and after purification as vehicle fuel.
Waste for which landfill is currently the only alternative, such as radioactive waste, waste from mining and certain industrial waste, is exempt from the tax. The aim is to reduce the amount of rubbish and to find more environmentally sound methods of waste management. The landfill tax is expected to reduce the number of landfill sites, with a concentration on larger, more specialized sites in the future.
Tax is not levied on waste that is composted or incinerated (Swedenvironment No.3, June 1993).
Biogas Utilization
Heat production takes place in gas boilers an is the simplest and most common way to use biogas. Emissions are much smaller than from oil combustion and don't lead to any net again in carbon dioxide. Since the gas is poroduced evenly over the year, it has to compete with cheap district central heating. The value is determined by the price of fuel that the biogas replaces.
Electricity and heat production takes place in gas motors. Electricity has a higher production value than heat and may give higher local emissions that heat alone.
For the biogas to be used as a vehicle fuel there is a need to produce it evenly over the year. Vehicle emissions are much smaller than with the use of conventional fuels. The value of the gas varies today depending on alternative prices for diesel or petrol. There are additional costs for purification, storage, and fuelling, as well as extra expense for the vehicle.