GAIA, GAYO, Experts call for Zero Waste Solutions at COP31

Climate advocates, researchers, youth leaders and local government officials have urged governments and climate financiers at COP31 to reject waste incineration and put their money into waste prevention, reuse, repair and composting instead. At a press conference titled “Zero Waste COP – Incinerators Out. Zero Waste In.”, organised by the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) on 11 November, speakers said the climate impact of waste can only be cut by tackling it at the source, not by building more facilities to burn or bury it.

“Zero waste is climate action, but only when we address the problem at its source. We cannot solve the waste crisis by building more infrastructure to burn or dispose of what we produce,” said Mariel Vilella, Climate Program Director at GAIA. “Preventing waste, expanding reuse and composting organic materials are practical and proven solutions that can cut emissions while delivering benefits for communities.” Rotting rubbish is a major source of methane, a gas about 80 times more powerful than carbon dioxide at trapping heat over 20 years.

According to the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), municipal solid waste and wastewater are the third-largest and fastest-growing source of human-caused methane, at nearly 20 per cent (about one in every five tonnes). Without action, these emissions are projected to rise by 6 to 18 per cent between 2020 and 2030. The CCAC also estimates that about 40 per cent of the world’s waste is openly burned (two in every five bags of rubbish), releasing black carbon and other harmful pollutants.

Around 2.5 billion people (about three in every ten people on Earth) lack adequate waste management services, mainly because city authorities cannot afford them. Methane in the atmosphere reached a record 1,948 parts per billion in 2025, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). UNEP’s Emissions Gap Report 2026 says global methane emissions must fall by at least 25 per cent (one-quarter) by 2035, compared with 2025.

For organic waste, the CCAC says methane must fall by at least 30 to 35 per cent (about one-third) to keep the 1.5°C goal within reach. The warming is already here. WMO’s State of the Climate update, released at the start of COP31, puts the global average temperature for January to September 2026 at 1.47°C above pre-industrial levels, with 2015–2026 set to be the 12 warmest years on record.

UNEP says current policies put the world on course for about 2.8°C of warming by 2100 (nearly double the 1.5°C limit). Speakers warned that the climate problem with waste begins long before disposal. Plastic production is closely tied to fossil fuels, with emissions across its lifecycle. “We cannot tackle climate change while allowing plastic production to keep expanding.

Reducing plastic production and scaling reuse must be part of any credible climate strategy,” said Mohamed Kamal, Coordinator of Climate Action Network Arab World (CANAW). A new GAIA report, Africa’s Waste Crisis Is Attracting the Wrong Solution: Waste-to-Energy Incineration, released on 15 October, examines 15 waste-to-energy projects and proposals across 10 African countries: Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

Only one, the Reppie plant in Ethiopia, is operating. Two are under construction and twelve are at the approval, financing, planning or proposal stage. Together, they carry more than US$4 billion in capital costs for an estimated 520–550 MW of capacity. The report finds that African public funds are the largest source of finance for these projects, and that long contracts can shift economic risk onto the public even when projects are described as private.

Near Ethiopia’s Koshe dumpsite, interviews found a 50 per cent drop (half) in waste pickers’ earnings linked to the Reppie incinerator. GAIA says most of Africa’s waste is organic and wet, so it burns poorly and may need fossil fuel support. Incinerators also release toxic pollutants and ash, cost hundreds of millions of dollars, and lock cities into 25–30 year contracts that require a constant supply of waste.

The CCAC notes that more than half of municipal solid waste in developing countries is organic. The report calls for a moratorium on new incineration agreements until independent assessments are done, public disclosure of contracts and impact assessments, formal integration of waste pickers, and investment in source separation, collection, composting and recycling.

“Incineration can lock municipalities into costly infrastructure, expose communities to harmful pollution, and divert resources from more inclusive zero waste alternatives,” said Weyinmi Okotie, Executive Director of Green Knowledge Foundation. “Africa needs solutions that respond to its actual waste realities, not expensive technologies that create new problems.” Speakers said the financing imbalance is a major barrier to the zero waste transition.

“Governments and climate fin