Tomsk Polytechnic University (TPU) specialists have established that over 70,000 cubic meters of industrial waste produced in the Arctic and Sub-Arctic Russian zones is suitable to be turned into fuel for thermal power plants (TPP).

“This kind of waste is not recycled but kept in the Arctic and Sub-Arctic. It may be recovered and turned into different types of fuel. Thus, barrels that used to contain POL may be cleaned, and what’s accumulated used to produce liquid composite fuel. Fuel may also be produced using plastic. Instead of burning it, it may be used as a fuel component,” said employee of the TPU Research School of High Energy Physics Galina Nyashina.

During research, experts studied articles published in Russian and foreign scientific journals in 2016–2019. They established that over 7,000 cubic meters of fit-for-use POL waste (in barrels) and over 64,000 cubic meters of solid domestic waste, such as paper, sawdust, building materials and plastic, to name a few, have accumulated in the Far North, the Arctic and adjacent regions.

Nyashina noted that using this waste in different combinations would make it possible to produce both eco-friendly fuel (by using woodchips and sawdust), as well as high energy fuel based on oil products. In addition to this, the construction of a recycling plant in the Arctic will help resolve the environmental problem, provide energy for the macro region and create additional power supplies for local TPPs.

Speaking at the meeting of the Arctic Council in 2019, President of Russia Vladimir Putin called the threat to the environment the main problem in the Arctic and noted that these risks will grow with the potential economic development of the Arctic zone. He added that Russia carries out its projects in the Arctic according to the latest environmental standards and will continue working in this vein.