It happens in waste-to-energy power plants (a.k.a garbage power plants). They can be a great way to get rid of waste but they require a lot of filtering of the exhaust to be safe. Adequate filtering is universal in some countries (like Sweden). In the USA, waste-to-energy plants frequently have inadequate filtering, which can make them dirtier than coal plants.
Do you know if they have to reach a certain temperature ?
I would think so because I assumme garbage produces a lot of fumes and gases that would better off
burned for energy rather that ending in the air.
On the other end I wonder what kind of temperature you can get with a dumpster
fire
> In the USA, waste-to-energy plants frequently have inadequate filtering, which can make them dirtier than coal plants.
Source? With EPA being so rigid about diesel cars it would doubt that. Unless the whole regulation was about keeping german car manufacturers in cheque...
Japan and I believe Singapore burn most of their plastic in incinerators to generate electricity. Coincidentally they are also among the highest plastic waste producers per capita.
Korea, Taiwan, and Switzerland are similar.
In my city there is an incineration plant which produces about 94 GWh of electricity a year, covering 11% of city's needs.