WAste Load Lifter Allocator – Earth class (WALL-E): a dream machine for waste management – a nightmare for the future of earth

Written by Antonis Mavropoulos

20-9-2008

I just watched the movie WALL-E with my daughter. It is a DISNEY – PIXAR production with high quality animation and interesting characters in the form of robots. But what makes the movie really audacious, at least for people working in waste management business, is that the main hero is a professional waste manager robot with the name Waste Load Lifter Allocator – Earth class (WALL-E). And this is why I think that the movie deserves some deeper thoughts about the future of waste management.

Comment 1: The movie presents earth, at least the big cities, after 500-700 years as “Waste Lands”. Different waste types have covered the whole surroundings and a lot of the actual city space. Skyscrapers have been built from packaged waste in order to save space for waste storage. No signal of life is detected. All the residents have been left for a cruise at space that lasts at least hundreds of years.

The only activity that is still going on is the waste packaging and allocation made by a robot.

I have never seen a so direct and full of meaning comment for the future of our civilization in case we will not find radical solutions to minimize waste production and improve their management in terms of maximizing recovery and minimizing residues.

WALL-E comes to remind everyone that solid waste management is directly related not only with the quality of life in big cities but even more with the actual capability to live in them. If we just imagine what will happen to New York, Paris or London, or any other big city in case waste management is completely out of order for 2-3 months…

The movie is also a great caution for the fact that we all know: the biggest challenges in solid waste management are still ahead us. The continuously increased production of waste in combination with the continuously increased variety and complexity of waste streams have created a big problem for our industry: waste management has to run just one step beyond new products consumption, without having the time and capacity to overtake (the curse of “always second”).

The only way to confront this lag – time is to integrate waste management and resources management. But that is something we all know is difficult, it needs radical industry transformations and it takes time. In order to gain more time, waste treatment technologies and recycling schemes are for the time being the only tools available.

The history of waste management has just started and the steps we have done so far are much more less than the steps we have to implement ahead.

Comment 2: Speaking technically, WALL-E as a robot is not so futuristic. Its main capabilities are already familiar in waste management industry, although they do not have been integrated in the form of a robot.

WALL-E moves using caterpillars and allocates the packs using well-designed mechanical arms, a little bit more modern that some lifters already have.

WALL-E can recognize different types of waste, using something like infrared or laser detector. Optical detectors have already been successfully tested in several facilities and are already in use.

Just because there is no human kind in earth, WALL-E makes no recycling or separation of waste streams. He (the robot is a male) peaks only what is a kind of game and all the rest are driven in his square stomach.

Then, his whole body acts as a compactor providing nice compacted waste packs.

WALL-E puts those packs in order creating daily cells, floors and skyscrapers of them.

My first thought when I saw WALL-E working was that this robot could be a kind of achievable machine for waste management industry. I am almost sure that robots that will act like WALL-E could be developed in the next 5-10 years. Maybe they will be not so handsome and sweet like WALL-E but certainly so effective in similar duties.

Comment 3 (final): There are some more interesting highlights in the movie. I peak two of them.

People in the space cruise are so much depended on robots and daily consumption of food and beverages, that they have been mutated to fat and unable to move entities. In general terms, the dependence of human kind on machines has been the subject of a lot of science fiction movies and books. But in this movie people have lost the most vital abilities: to move and communicate directly.

There is also a female robot called EVA. This robot is by far more advanced than WALL-E in terms of a. movement (EVA suspends and flies fast in stead of moving with caterpillars) and b. capacity to detect and recognize items.

The weak point of EVA is that it is by far much more depended from its technological advances and very sensitive to their damages or malfunctions.

WALL-E on the other hand is much more simple and heavy – duty made. Those properties are necessary in order to survive in crude environments, although they are creating troubles when you move to complex technological systems.

Instead of conclusion: go and watch WALL-E. There are a lot to think about…

ISWA “From Open Dumps to Sanitary Landfills” Workshop - Saturday 1 November 2008, Singapore

SEMINAR PROGRAM Click Here to download a printable pdf version of the seminar brochure 8.30am Registration 9.00am Opening & Welcome Introduction Derek Greedy, Chair of ISWA Working Group on Landfill (UK) 9.10am Closure of Open Dumps Jan Thrane, Odense Renovationsselskab A/S (Denmark) 9.30am CDM - A Driver for Improvded Landfill Practices in Developing Countries Gary Crawford, Veolia (France) 10.00am Landfill Gas Recovery and Utilisation Graeme Alford, Landfill Gas & Power (Australia) 10.30am Tea Break 10.45am Landfill Engineering Beyond the Open Dump Antonis Mavropoulus, EPEM SA (Greece) 11.15am Guidelines for Improving Solid Waste Disposal Sites in Pacific Island Countries Stuart Dever, GHD (Australia) 11.45am HELP Model - Demonstrate the Potential Impacts of Leachate Migration from Open Dumps James Law, SCS Engineers (USA) 12.15pm Lunch Break 1.00pm Case Study Presentations Experiences from Turkey as an Example of a Developing Country Dr Günay Kocasoy, Institute of Environmental Sciences - Bogazici University (Turkey) 1.30pm Closure of Open Dumps in Tonga and Samoa Islands Stuart Dever, GHD (Australia) 2.00pm Overview of Land-Based Waste Disposal Systems in Africa Reuben Ossai, The Initiates Limited (Nigeria) 2.30pm Malaysian Scenario on Landfill Management (Closure) Prof Dr P Agamuthu, Inst. of Biological Science - University of Malaya (Malaysia) 3.00pm Tea Break 3.15pm MSW Disposal in Brazil: Evolution and Tendencies Carlos R V Silva Filho, ABRELPE (Brazil) 3.45pm Workshop Wrap-Up Derek Greedy 4.15pm HELP Model - Practical Demonstration James Law, SCS Engineers (USA) 5.30pm Workshop Close CLICK HERE TO REGISTER ONLINE NOW VENUE The workshop will be held at the Suntec Singapore International Convention & Exhibition Centre. Room 310, Level 3 Suntec Singapore International Convention & Exhibition Centre 1 Raffles Boulevard, Suntec City, Singapore OFFICIAL LANGUAGE The official working language of the workshop is English. There will be no translation. REGISTRATION FEES ISWA Members: Prior to 15 Sep AUD $170 (approx 225 SGD/€105) After 15 Sep AUD$200 (approx 245 SGD/€120) Non Members: Prior to 15 Sep AUD $230 (approx 300 SGD/€140) After 15 Sep AUD$260 (approx 320 SGD/€155) Students & Developing Countries: Prior to 15 Sep AUD $80 (approx 105 SGD/€50) After 15 Sep AUD$110 (approx 135 SGD/€65) The registration fee includes participation in the workshop, workshop proceedings on CD-Rom, morning/afternoon tea and lunch. FURTHER INFORMATION For further information contact: Veronica Dullens Waste Management Association of Australia Email: veronica@wmaa.asn.au or telephone: +61 2 8746 5055 The organisers reserve the right to cancel the workshop should minimum numbers not be reached. Should the workshop be cancelled all registration fees will be refunded in full. Disclaimer: This Email is only for general information and is not to be taken as a substitute for specific advice. Views expressed are those of the writers and do not necessarily represent WMAA. WMAA: Suite 4D, 5 Belmore St BURWOOD NSW 2134, T: 02 8746 5000, F: 02 9701 0199. If you do not wish to receive further emails from WMAA please email enquiries@wmaa.asn.au.