To this regard, different kinds of biomass and wastes can contribute to the production of energy by means of biological, chemical and thermal processes.

In addition to meeting the need for alternative sources of energy, waste-to-energy allows to close the cycle in modern integrated waste management scenarios.

Existing biomass and waste to energy technologies are undergoing rapid development: processes are optimized, new ideas are proposed for technical application.

Despite the growing interest for the use of these technologies, in many countries their implementation still is at a low level, mainly for reasons other than technical and economical (i.e., low public acceptability, bad experience from the past, insufficient knowledge and experience, and others)

In this situation, the aim of the Symposium Venice 2006 is to present the advances in biomass and waste to energy technologies and to encourage the discussion on relevant aspects such as:

• reliability of processes and technologies,
• full scale applicability of new processes,
• technical and economical optimization,
• improvement of energy balance,
• environmental impact and potential health effects,
• information and education,
• selection of the appropriate process for the specific situation,
• adaptation of technologies to different geographical and cultural situations.

The programme of the Symposium will last three days and will include an oral session (with presentations by distinguished invited speakers and short communications illustrating practical experiences and case studies), a poster session for offered papers (see the call for posters) and a small exhibition by companies working in the field.

Contact Person: Giulia Suriano
IWWG - International Waste Working Group (www.iwwg.eu) and CISA - Environmental Sanitary Engineering Center (IT)
City: Venice
Country: Italy
Phone: 39 049 8726986
E-mail: eurowaste@tin.it
Web: http://www.venicesymposium.it/venice2006/venice.html