Technology forecast in industrial waste management and treatment

As part of the 'Economic Valorization of Waste Treatment Strategies' (topic number 7 of this symposium), CITMA presents the Forecast as a tool, to be used in countries with intensive technology development as Japan, UK or Germany, for designing the Science and Technology Policy of a country. With the aim of determining the future technology demands and identifying the emergent technologies that probably produce the principal economic and social benefits for Spanish Industries, the Spanish Ministry of Industry and Energy (MINER, Ministerio de Industria y Energía), has promoted the creation of an Observatory for Industrial Technological Forecasting (OPTI, Observatorio de Prospectiva Tecnológica Industrial), included in the planning activities of the new R&D Industrial Support Program (ATYCA). CITMA (Centro de Innovación Tecnológica del Medio Ambiente), as a member of this project in charge of the Industry Environment Sector, started a first Forecast exercise on Industrial Waste Management and Treatment in 1998. Different areas related to Industrial Wastes: Characterization, Minimization, Recycling, Treatment and Elimination have been analyzed by more than 200 Spanish experts.