Articles Authors About RWE OWI Platform

Optimal Waste Intelligence · Archive

Older Articles - Page 5

Previously published OWI analysis. Use the navigation below to move between pages.

A publication by Renewable Waste Energy - 30+ years transforming waste into resources.

PFAS Superfund Liability Is Landing: What the 400 to 800 Percent Leachate Cost Jump Means for Thermal Destruction
7 min read

PFAS Superfund Liability Is Landing: What the 400 to 800 Percent Leachate Cost Jump Means for Thermal Destruction

EPA's PFOA and PFOS Superfund listing is repricing landfill leachate by 400 to 800 percent. Who pays, who profits, and why thermal destruction wins.

Read article →
Generative AI Runs Your Waste Plant's Paperwork, Not Its Set Points
8 min read

Generative AI Runs Your Waste Plant's Paperwork, Not Its Set Points

Generative AI copilots help most in a waste plant's back office, not on the line. An engineer on where LLMs pay off, where they hallucinate, and why.

Read article →
The Fischer-Tropsch Reactor Isn't the Hard Part of Waste-to-SAF. The Cleanup Train Is.
8 min read

The Fischer-Tropsch Reactor Isn't the Hard Part of Waste-to-SAF. The Cleanup Train Is.

Waste to sustainable aviation fuel sounds simple: gasify trash, run Fischer-Tropsch, get jet fuel. The syngas cleanup train is where the plants keep dying.

Read article →
Where California's Textile EPR Sends the Clothes Nobody Can Recycle
7 min read

Where California's Textile EPR Sends the Clothes Nobody Can Recycle

California textile EPR hit its July 2026 registration deadline, but nothing's collected until 2031 and the blended, PFAS-laden residual has no recycler.

Read article →
11 to 179 Cents a Pound: Why 2026 Packaging EPR Fees Track Format, Not Weight
8 min read

11 to 179 Cents a Pound: Why 2026 Packaging EPR Fees Track Format, Not Weight

The 2026 packaging EPR fee schedule charges 11 to 179 cents a pound by format, not weight. How the invoice is computed, and why your reported data sets it.

Read article →
Do the 2026 Lithium Battery EPR Laws Land on You or the Producer?
7 min read

Do the 2026 Lithium Battery EPR Laws Land on You or the Producer?

NJ producer reporting opened Jan 8; California's SB 1215 fee started Jan 1. Which 2026 lithium battery EPR laws bind producers, and which hit waste handlers?

Read article →
In US Waste-to-Energy, the Kilowatt-Hour Is the Byproduct. The Gate Fee Is the Product.
5 min read

In US Waste-to-Energy, the Kilowatt-Hour Is the Byproduct. The Gate Fee Is the Product.

US waste-to-energy economics from the public EIA numbers: the gate fee is worth several times the power per ton. Underwrite the tipping fee.

Read article →
Landfill Mining Pays for the Airspace, Not the Aluminum
8 min read

Landfill Mining Pays for the Airspace, Not the Aluminum

Landfill mining almost never pays for the recovered metal. It pays for reclaimed airspace, closure liability, or not at all - here's when the dig clears.

Read article →
Textile Waste to Energy: Why Old Clothes Resist the Reactor
7 min read

Textile Waste to Energy: Why Old Clothes Resist the Reactor

Textile waste to energy looks easy: clothing burns hotter than MSW. The energy was never the problem. The bale, the chlorine, and the broken sort are.

Read article →
The Big Haulers Put $100M Behind AI. Almost None of the Margin Comes From the Model.
7 min read

The Big Haulers Put $100M Behind AI. Almost None of the Margin Comes From the Model.

Waste Connections, Republic and GFL just disclosed real AI waste management ROI numbers. An engineer reads the margin math and finds where it breaks.

Read article →
Inside a Waste-to-Energy Power Plant, the Turbine Is the Easy Part
9 min read

Inside a Waste-to-Energy Power Plant, the Turbine Is the Easy Part

A waste to energy power plant makes about 550 kWh a tonne, but the turbine isn't what decides that. An engineer walks the line from bunker to export meter.

Read article →
Your Waste Analytics Dashboard Is Only as Honest as Its Worst Sensor
9 min read

Your Waste Analytics Dashboard Is Only as Honest as Its Worst Sensor

Real-time waste analytics fails at the data layer, not the dashboard. An engineer on what the screen shows, where the numbers break, and what it costs.

Read article →