In the Dordogne, is the construction of an incinerator the solution for disposing of household waste and rubbish?

Faced with rising taxes for burying waste before the process is banned in 2033, the SMD3 is considering the possibility of building an incinerator. On a departmental scale, or even by sharing a tool that is otherwise criticized with neighboring areas.

Will the Dordogne soon have an incinerator to burn its waste for the next half century? Or, to use a different vocabulary, an energy recovery unit (UVE), in which the burned waste will produce energy to power heating and electricity networks?

More than two decades after a previous project fizzled out, the decision will be made at the end of the year. For the departmental area alone, or in conjunction with neighboring communities (see elsewhere). Pascal Protano, president of the Dordogne Departmental Waste Joint Syndicate (SMD3), is currently studying the issue: "A strategic plan is tasked with addressing waste disposal, particularly residual household waste [RH]."

Either the famous black bags, which are now buried in two sites located in the department. 75,000 tons of waste are buried each year in Saint-Laurent-des-Hommes, which is the capacity of the site . The surplus is sent to Milhac-d'Auberoche (privately managed).

By Pascal Protano's own admission, "we don't know where we'll be after 2033," the year marking the end of the authorization to bury waste locally, even if exemptions remain possible.

The underlying question regarding the choice of location for an incinerator (if this is the chosen route) will be resolved later. The only certainty is that "it will not be in the open countryside," assures the SMD3 president, aware that the heat produced by a future UVE is an energy source to be exploited (for industry, public or private buildings).

The question will become more pressing as the years go by. Even with a drop of almost 25% (18,000 tonnes less in the last three years), with an average drop of 40% in the 378 municipalities that apply the incentive fee , the volume of household waste remains significant: 56,809 tonnes in the department in 2024.

"We don't know where we'll be after 2033."

A solution for disposing of this waste will have to be found. This may even mean challenging the ideas held by some elected officials, for example in the Périgord Noir region: they suggest exporting the waste outside the department, to neighbors who have an incinerator. A quick look at this theory invalidates it.

At the end of 2024, the Gironde waste management unions produced a far from glowing inventory: "In 2022, the optimal incineration capacity of the two UVEs was 375,000 tonnes for a treatment requirement of 525,000 tonnes," they said. In this case, these are the two 250,000-tonne incinerators in Bègles and 125,000 in Cenon, which only eliminate two-thirds of the Gironde waste produced.

In Corrèze, two incinerators are operating at full capacity: a plant in Rosiers-d'Égletons, which can burn 43,000 tons of waste; another in Saint-Pantaléon-de-Larche, built in 1972 near Brive, which can process 72,000 tons of waste per year. In November 2024, Veolia announced the construction of a new site with a capacity of 79,200 tons, which will come into operation in 2029. However, the Dordogne region has not yet been able to join the project.

In Charente-Maritime, the three incinerators are also running at full capacity: the one at Échillais near Rochefort has just obtained the right to burn an additional 5,000 tonnes annually, increasing its capacity to 74,400 tonnes; another at La Rochelle is configured for 66,000 tonnes, while north of Saintes, Paillé is configured for 30,000 tonnes.

In the south, Agen has an aging plant designed to handle 32,000 tons. Elected officials are considering creating a site for departmental use.

In the North, the approach is more advanced: an incinerator is in the pipeline (at a cost of 190 million euros) in Limoges, to replace the existing one with a capacity of 110,000 tonnes. Intended to treat waste from Haute-Vienne and part of Creuse, its size has been reduced (95,000 tonnes rather than 107,000 tonnes) following initial consultations.

Is the Dordogne alone? Not necessarily. One possibility could be to share an incinerator with the Charente department, which has been facing the same landfill problem since the closure of the Couronne incinerator (32,000 tonnes) near Angoulême in 2018. The Charente union Calitom decided to move away from landfilling in 2022. But a project for a 120,000-ton UVE near Angoulême was shelved in the spring of 2025: part of the population was up in arms against the project. This crystallized on the reality of pollutant emissions in the fumes. An investment estimated at 150 million euros that would have included waste from Haute Saintonge and Libournais.

The financial equation must also be taken into account: the general tax on polluting activities (TGAP) increased between 2020 and 2025 from 12 to 25 euros per tonne for incinerated waste, and from 25 to 65 euros per tonne for buried waste.

The fact remains that the incineration process itself is criticized: the Zero Waste France association, which campaigns for waste prevention, called in May 2025 for a moratorium on all new projects, concerned about the "development of mega-incinerators under the pretext of energy production. Unrelated to waste prevention ambitions, these costly and polluting projects are nevertheless energy inefficient," it attacks. The organization advocates for investments in waste prevention and reduction through the establishment of composting sites, material recovery facilities, separate collection of biowaste, or reuse centers.

Pauline Massart, President of Zero Waste Dordogne , agrees and emphasizes the "huge investment" that an incinerator would represent, for which it would be necessary to "continue to produce waste." She invites the SMD3 to "adopt a policy of waste reduction rather than adopting a victim-like stance."

Finally, what about other possible alternative solutions? Beyond a single UVE, Pascal Protano is also considering solid fuel incineration units (1), a technology that also has its detractors. He also recently visited a facility in the Tarn region that includes a methanization unit. Against a backdrop of heated debate, the equation looks set to be complex to resolve.

(1) CSR: waste previously sorted to be prepared in the form of fuel.