When their central waste incinerator packed up, five municipalities in Denmark were left with two options. They could invest in another incinerator. Or, they could do something completely different.

In true Danish style, the group of authorities near Copenhagen chose option B, and commissioned New York architecture firm BIG to design something new. The 80m tall structure will burn 400,000 tonnes of waste a year; it’ll also generate enough electricity for 50,000 houses, and enough heat for 120,000.

Best of all, the Amager Bakke plant, as it’ll be called, will also put its 41,000 square metres of roof to good use. It’ll double as a small mountain, complete with trees, hiking trails and 500m-worth of ski slope coated with synthetic snow.

Skiers gambol atop the giant furnace.

Keen to prevent visitors becoming too complacent or joyful, however, the architects have built in what they call a “gentle reminder of the impact of consumption”: the power plant’s main stack will emit a single smoke ring whenever a tonne of carbon dioxide is produced. We assume this rendering of the building in the throes of what appears to be a nuclear winter is meant to serve the same purpose.

The building, around 5km from Copenhagen, is currently under construction and should be completed by 2017. Now, they just need to come up with a clever portmanteau to describe the new structure. “Skincinerator” doesn’t quite cut it.

All images: BIG.