8. CONCLUSIONS TO PART 2
Islands have increasing amounts of waste, limited space, limited or inexistent sources of
energy, and in some cases, limited freshwater resources. This situation may bring
opportunities for the implementation of WTE.
In all cases analyzed in this study, the use of dumps for waste disposal is, or used to be,
the common practice. Governments are now aware of the environmental consequences of
such practices and are trying to improve their waste management systems.
It is usually recommended to improve a waste management system one step at a time,
that is, to go from dumps to sanitary landfills, to waste to energy; but it is interesting to
note that in some islands, they skipped the regulated landfill step, and went directly from
dumps to WTE. This phenomenon can be partly attributed to their limited land available,
but may also be due to the desire to develop local and renewable energy sources.