Switzerland's oldest waste incineration plant has had its day

The Josefstrasse waste incineration plant (KVA) has reached the end of its service life and its operating license is expiring. It will therefore be used for waste incineration for the last time at the end of March 2021, after which it will be shut down and partially demolished. From this date, the energy supply for the district heating area of Zurich West will be ensured via the new Josefstrasse energy center. Two gas boilers are currently being installed and commissioned there. The energy center will be operated exclusively on fossil fuel until the end of 2021; from 2022, hot water for the Zurich West district heating network will be supplied from the Hagenholz plant via the newly built, approximately 6 km long connecting pipeline. Fossil energy will be used from January 2022 mainly for peak coverage as well as a fallback level. The boilers can also be switched to oil in the event of a gas shortage. However, the city of Zurich also wants to use as little fossil energy as possible for district heating production during peak load periods in the future and is working on corresponding studies.

A novelty for Switzerland when it opened in 1904

The Josefstrasse plant is located in the middle of the densely built-up district 5 and supplies energy to around 80 percent of the properties in the district heating area of Zurich West, including the Prime Tower and Europaallee. However, when incineration of waste began at Josefstrasse in 1904, the plant was still surrounded by meadows and fields. The Josefstrasse plant was the first MSW incinerator in Switzerland. It was still common practice for a long time to dispose of waste in landfills. Around two decades after the start-up, in 1928, the city of Zurich began to use the waste heat from the Josefstrasse plant as a source of energy and to supply it to households as well as businesses in the city center.

Securing the district heating supply for Zurich West

Since 2011, the waste incineration plant Josefstrasse was no longer included in the cantonal waste planning due to overcapacities. In order to continue to supply the district heating area of Zurich West, the plant was nevertheless continued. During the last ten years, the waste incineration plant Josefstrasse was operated by Fernwärme Zürich AG, a joint venture of the city of Zurich and the German energy supplier EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG. The waste recycled was mainly from southern Germany. The Template for the extension of the district heating supplywhich also included the construction of the energy center, the dismantling of the Josefstrasse waste incineration plant and the first steps for the expansion of the district heating supply, was approved by the electorate in 2018 with a yes vote of 83 percent.

Vacated areas are put to new use 

The sites of the current Josefstrasse plant and the neighboring, already decommissioned central laundry together form the Josef site, an area totaling 20,000 m2. The energy center will occupy 4000 m2. Under the direction of the Office of Urban Planning, a development concept is currently being worked out for the construction and use of the remaining, freely available area. The plant's distinctive chimney, which is around 90 meters high, will continue to be needed for the energy center and will therefore not be demolished. As a result, the chimney's attached Falcon's Nest preserved, which is often home to breeding birds of prey and enjoys great popularity among the population.

Source: City of Zurich, Department of Civil Engineering and Waste Management