The Syndicat Pic et Etang awards SUEZ the first contract in France for the operation of a waste-to-energy plant incorporating waste reduction targets

With each inhabitant in France producing an average of 582 kg of waste each year, waste reduction is a major environmental challenge for local authorities.

In force since 1 January 2023, the 10-year operating contract for the Lunel-Viel waste-to-energy (WtE) plant includes an ambitious target for the reduction of the amount of waste processed. The tonnage incinerated is set to drop from 120,000 tonnes in 2023 to 90,000 tonnes in 2033, a 25% reduction in 10 years. This ambition makes it a first in France.

The policy revolves around two aspects:

• Continuity of the public waste disposal service: an outlet must continue to be provided for the waste produced by the 220,000 inhabitants covered by the waste treatment authority, at an affordable price for the local authorities and their citizens.
• The environmental and public health aspects, from global to local:
   - Reduce discharges of pollutants,
   - Reduce greenhouse gas emissions,
   - Incinerate only waste for which there is no material recovery solution.

Applying the latter aspect is a response to the concerns of local inhabitants, environmental protection and the climate emergency.

To achieve these results, SUEZ is implementing a targeted action plan, aiming to:

• Remove biowaste from household waste, through the distribution of individual and collective compost bins, awareness initiatives and on-farm composting.
• Promote the donation, reuse and repair of bulky waste items and reduce the number of those incinerated, by raising awareness among refuse tip users, and implementing a primary sorting platform for bulky waste, a permanent recycling depot and several mobile ones, and object repair workshops across the region.
• Sort more recyclable household packaging and sort it better, and filter out a proportion of the packaging found in household waste though targeted communications.
• Raise user awareness through digital and local communication with the deployment of an app, “Mon Service Déchets” (My waste service) offering easy access to waste disposal information and advice on waste sorting and reduction.

These prevention initiatives will be implemented by a Prevention and Performance unit and an ecosystem of more than 30 local non-profit structures working in the circular, social and solidarity economy sphere.

As a result of the waste prevention and reduction efforts made by the Syndicat Pic et Etang, the carbon footprint of the WtE plant will be significantly improved, dropping by 10,500 tonnes of CO₂ of greenhouse gas emissions in a year, the equivalent of 84,000 car trips from Lunel-Viel to Paris.

As a plant which is already highly efficient in this area, OCTAV will go even further with the modification of its process to attain the lowest atmospheric emissions in France. Nearly 14 million euros will be invested in these works starting in 2023, harnessing the best market-available technology.

Water consumption on site will be reduced by 80%. Systems will be used to help reduce the amount of water withdrawn from the natural environment: the installation of a weather station, and the deployment of humidity and temperature sensors and intelligent water meters to manage use in real time. A new reservoir will collect rainwater for reuse.

Biodiversity around the plant will be reinforced by managing and monitoring fauna and flora across the site’s 40,000 sqm of natural space, and with the development of a garden with endemic tree species representative of the six local communities covered by the Syndicat Pic et Etang.