The Celje regional waste teatment centre – a joint project of 24 municipalities of the Savinja region
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»Wastes that are daily generated in our homes, at work and elsewhere pose a problem that is getting bigger, yet it is also an opportunity. Certain shares of wastes can be utilized and the environment can be disburdened«.
This is a statement in one of the leaflets presenting the Regional waste treatment centre in Celje (RCERO Celje) put down by its designers. It simply summarizes the essence of the construction of such centres so that everybody can understand it.
The Regional waste treatment centre in Celje is a complex project for modern and environmentally friendly waste management with the beginnings dating to 1993 when the Waste Management Strategy in the area of the Municipality of Celje was adopted. Two years later preparatory works for the Centre construction started.
The importance of a project for a more quality life of the inhabitants in this area that is worth a bit more than EUR 58 million can be confirmed by the fact that 24 municipalities in the Savinja region joined their efforts to realize this project. The funds to co-finance the regional centre construction that was carried out in two phases were acquired also from the Cohesion Fund in the programming period 2004-2006 and this share amounted to approximately EUR 29 million.
With the Centre construction the problem of municipal waste disposal has been solved for the next 30 years and for about 250 thousand inhabitants in the municipalities: Bistrica ob Sotli, Braslovče, Celje, Dobje, Dobrna, Kozje, Laško, Mozirje, Podčetrtek, Polzela, Prebold, Rečica ob Savinji, Rogaška Slatina, Rogatec, Šentjur, Šmarje pri Jelšah, Šmartno ob Paki, Šoštanj, Štore, Tabor, Velenje, Vojnik, Vransko and Žalec.
Regardless of the efficiency of separate waste collection, a substantial share of municipal waste is still deposited. With the procedure, the so called mechanical-biological treatment of waste the quantities of deposited waste can reduce significantly in an economic and environmentally friendly manner. With this process the volume of waste – due to biological degradation and loss of water – can reduce by one third. The second third of waste is subject to thermal treatment in the district heating plant whereas the residual waste is deposited. The thermal treatment of municipal waste is the final stage in waste treatment.
In 2007, two separate facilities were constructed, namely for the mechanical-biological treatment and thermal treatment of waste, and this was the realization of the second phase of the project.
The planned technological process enables generation of heat and electrical energy from the light fraction of residual municipal waste and the removal of sludge from the waste water treatment plant. Every year, approximately 20,000 tonnes of previously treated waste and 5,000 tonnes of sludge will be subject to thermal treatment in the district heating plant.
Several important objectives will be attained with the Celje District heating plant. It is expected that the volume of waste deposited in Bukovžlak will reduce by 65% and thus also the problem of sludge from the municipal waste water treatment plant will be solved in an ecologically suitable manner. Obtained heat will be used for electricity generation as well as an additional source for heating the eastern part of Celje. The thermal power of the combustion plant is 15 MW with 2 MW of electricity produced.
