Overview

Twenty-first century China faces many challenges.  One major challenge that they are aggressively addressing is environmental stewardship.  With more cities of 1 million or more than any country in the world and the fastest growing economy, management of Municipal Solid Waste MSW is critical.  Waste to energy (WTE) technologies are being implemented to reduce the volume of MSW to landfills and generate much needed energy, however, cleaner and more effective alternatives are needed.  At the same time, with more mouths to feed than any nation, their agricultural soils are suffering degradation; yields are diminishing and reliance on fossil fuel fertilizers increasing.

Terra Preta Solutions views MSW as a resource to be managed and utilized.  If managed with an integrated materials management approach, emphasizing source reduction, reuse, recycling, separation of waste streams and more advanced combustion technologies, Terra Preta Solutions feels this resource can solve local issues and have a significant positive global impact.

The name Terra Preta (literally “black earth” in Portuguese) comes from a type of very dark, fertile soil found in the Amazon Basin within a relatively infertile Amazonian soil. It owes its name to a very high charcoal content that was originally created in pre-Columbian times (450 BC to 950 AD). Modern day science is recreating this potential carbon capture and storage and soil amendment in light of present day global carbon reduction efforts. Biochar created through pyrolysis of carbon sources is presently being researched as a way of replicating this situation. In this spirit Terra Preta Solutions also seeks to use lessons learned from the past combined with modern-day cleantech and best practices to implement environmental solutions to reduce waste, reuse that which has been considered as a waste as a resource, and create renewable energy, valuable products like soil amendments and facilitate carbon capture and storage.

Terra Preta Solutions has identified some critical growth areas within the Municipal Solid Waste and biosolids space where mature cleantech can significantly reduce pollution, lower carbon and generate renewable resources:

MSW:  With over 160 cities of over 1 million and MSW volume increasing at 5% per year, municipal solid waste is reaching crisis levels. Communities are running out of room for landfills and public reaction to pollutants from traditional waste-to-energy facilities are rising. For the first time all the stakeholders are aligned and eager to find and implement solutions. Terra Preta Solutions is seeking mature, non-polluting technologies to implement in Chinese cities.

Discarded Tires: Within MSW, Terra Preta is researching recycling discarded tires. Next to the U.S., China is now the world's biggest car market and it ranks third in the global list of largest vehicle producers. China’s tire manufacturing industry is also growing to keep pace. Just as the US and Europe have discovered the challenge of millions of discarded tires, China’s exponential growth is creating a crisis in discarded tires. The disposal issue is further compounded by an informal, small scale and scattered recycling sector. Terra Preta is presently working with several stakeholders to develop an economically sustainable and replicable solution. Working with a cutting edge, mature cleantech that transforms discarded tires into economically viable products and renewable energy and the national and regional Tire Recycling Associations, Terra Preta is developing a turn-key solution.

Battery Recycling:  Another growth segment of MSW is battery recycling. Lead poisoning worldwide is three times larger than AIDS – but does not require new technologies to solve. With lead production shifting from US and Europe to China and India, 99% of the most serious cases are in the majority world. Compounding China’s rapidly expanding auto industry is the world’s largest electric bicycle industry. China is also poised to perhaps be the worldwide leader in the development of electric vehicles. Significant needs exist due to a lack of infrastructure for organized, scaled battery collection and recycling and inadequate environmentally safe treatment facilities. Terra Preta Solutions is poised to bridge lessons learned in the west with partners in the East to reduce blood lead poisoning, recycle a wasted resource and develop a domestic supply of lead.