Danish Company to Build Anaerobic Digestion Plant in N Ayrshire Scotland

Denmark’s market leading supplier of AD technology is to build a large AD plant in Scotland. The agreement which amounts to approximately 8.0 million Euros has been entered into with one of the largest energy companies in the UK, Scottish and Southern Energy.

The Scottish AD plant will be built at Barkip, North Ayrshire. It is expected to be operational for energy production in early 2011 and will contribute to achieving Scottish targets for CO2 reduction. The plant will be capable of processing 80,000 tons of organic waste annually, producing 2MW of renewable electricity. The plant will be the first for both Xergi and SSE in Scotland.

The entire plant will be delivered by Xergi and will convert the organic waste into renewable energy in the form of methane gas and nitrogenous organic fertiliser.

The plant consists of reception facilities, a fully automatic feeding system capable of handling many different types of organic waste, anaerobic digesters with a unique stirring system for the production of methane, a CHP (combined heat and power) unit producing power and heat, and storage tanks for the fertiliser.

SSE Chief Executive Ian Marchant said:

“Biogas has the potential to be one of the most important new generation renewable and sustainable energy solutions available to us, capturing the energy contained in waste. SSE is excited about entering the biogas market which we believe offers opportunities beyond on-site electricity generation to include connections to the gas distribution network in the future. This new project will enable SSE to gain experience in owning and operating this technology so we are well placed to bring that knowledge to future projects in Scotland.”

For more information visit the Xergi web site.

Large Ener-G AD Plant Biogas Cogeneration System Gets Hungary on Map of AD User's

ENER-G is the company playing a big part in great Hungarian wastewater scheme.

One of Europe's most bold biogas from wastewater projects has been switched on in Budapest by ENER-G.

The UK clean technology company's Hungarian subsidiary ENER-G Energia Technologia Zrt. Has designed and constructed this 2.6 million renewable power centre at the Budapest wastewater treatment plant in Csepel.

It will be part of the Living Danube programme, which is Europe's biggest environmental investment currently in development.

ENER-G has installed a 4.5 MWe biogas cogeneration system, along with 3 2.5MW Loos boilers for further hot water generation using natural gas, or biogas. The company also manages the operations and upkeep services. The eco-friendly energy centre will form part of a biological treatment facility covering 70,000m on a twenty-nine hectare site at Csepel Island.

The plant will increase the quantity of biologically treated wastewater in Budapest to 95% by 2010 treating a standard 350,000 m3 / day waste water from almost all of Buda and part of Pest, serving roughly 1,000,000 folks.

The development of the plant took more than 2 years and cost almost half a billion EU Bucks. Financially the project has been backed by the ECU , the Hungarian state and Budapest municipality.

It'll meet high environmental standards, achieving nought emissions and no odours outside of the site borders.

It'll supply up to 4.5MWe of renewable (replaceable) electricity to the site which means that it gives over 50% of the plant's total electricity consumption. This is comparable in output of eight giant air turbines. ]

The maximum 8.5MW heat generated by the mixed heat and power ( CHP ) unit is exploited in the digester process consuming 563m3 / h biogas per unit. The Budapest wastewater treatment plant is a clear illustration of how effective anaerobic digestion is as a commercial and environmental solution for sizeable projects like this, related Balazs Marialigeti, Director of ENER-G.

It is very fulfilling to be concerned in this revolutionary venture and we are looking forward enthusiastically to full commissioning in Sep 2010. Anaerobic digestion ( AD ) transforms organic waste material into energy and is a definite winning technology that delivers important commercial benefits, while helping to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

Digestion plants produce a biogas that has high methane content of 50-70 percent. This otherwise environmentally damaging gas is a rich fuel that may drive a CHP unit to generate both heat and electricity.

The heat may be employed in the digestion plant alongside for heating in close by buildings, while the replaceable electricity can be sold at premium rates.

ENER-G has substantial experience of building, operating and financing major biogas projects across Europe and the company is expanding its team of specialist engineers to meet increasing demand for methane-rich biogas projects , for example AD.

For more information visit ENER-G's web site.

Did You Know that Thames Water Burns Its Sludge (it Also Digests It Too)

Thames Water achieved a saving of £15m on its electricity bill in 2008/9 by generating its own renewable power from its 13.6 million customer created sludge.

Britain's largest water and sewerage company generated a 14 per cent of its power needs from a combination of burning sewage sludge at some locations, and anaerobically digesting it at others, and then burning the methane derived from it.
Thames Water's Climate Change Strategy Manager, Dr Keith Colquhoun, is quoted as saying that their investment in renewable energy plants has been

"good news because we now treat 2.8 billion litres of sewage every day at our 349 sewage works. The solids in sewage have a high calorific content that we use to generate electricity.

"And this isn't a gimmick: as well as helping us to be more sustainable as a company, it also saves money - £15m less spent on energy last year alone, saving money for customers."

"Our goal is to cut greenhouse emissions by 20 per cent on 1990 levels by 2020 - that's about 200,000 tonnes less CO2. By using sludge derived power and other renewable energy sources, we're making significant progress towards this target after cutting emissions by five per cent in the past two years, despite grid energy becoming more carbon-intensive.

"Delegates at the Copenhagen Climate Change Summit must face the fact that combating climate change is no longer about talk. It's about all of us taking action - and in our case, that includes sludge power."

Thames Water - which has the largest renewable electricity generation capacity inside the M25 motorway ring, excluding the commercial electricity generators - uses two methods to generate power from sewage:

1. Thermal destruction with energy recovery, where sewage sludge, which is the solid content of the sewage dried into blocks of 'poo cake', is burned to generate power; and
2. Anaerobic digestion, or (with) CHP (combined heat and power) generation, which is where methane derived from sewage sludge is burned to created heat, which in turn generates power.

The following Thames Water sewage works have AD/CHP plants: Maple Lodge (Rickmansworth), Mogden (Isleworth), Rye Meads (Herts), Deephams (Edmonton), Oxford, Reading, Long Reach (Dartford), Slough, Hogsmill (Kingston), Beddington (Surrey), Swindon, Bishops Stortford, Banbury, Aylesbury, Basingstoke, Bracknell, Camberley, Crawley, East Hyde (Luton) and Wargrave (Berks).

And the following two works use thermal destruction:

Beckton, in East London north of the River Thames, Europe's largest sewage works, which treats about 3.5 million people's waste every day; and Crossness, in East London south of the river, which treats the human equivalent of 2 million people's waste.

After it has been used to generate electricity, Thames Water then offers the remaining sewage sludge to farmers to use as fertiliser, or to developers as landscaping material or soil improver. In 2008/09 the firm put 100 per cent of its sewage sludge to beneficial use, sending none of it to landfill and as a result saving millions of pounds in UK landfill tax.

Further details about using sludge to generate power and Thames Water's 100 % win-win utilisation of sludge for renewable energy production can be found in the company's Corporate Responsibility Report

TESCO Shopping Complex to be Powered by Food Using Anaerobic Digestion

The power of food

Supermarket giant TESCO'S new distribution centre in Widnes is to be completely powered by renewable energy generated from food waste, they have announced.

It has joined with with transport company Stobart Croup, and food waste recycling experts the PDM Croup in a move that will see the new shopping centre take its renewable energy from PDM's combined heat and power (CHP) plant that turns 230,000 tonnes of food waste, including Tesco's unwanted, into green renewable heat and electricity. The retailing company is already working with PDM which recycles all Tesco's meat waste at present.

There are no losses in the cable route either as the power is sent via their own cable link which provides renewable energy direct from the CHP plant to the neighbouring distribution centre.

Tesco has leased the new 528,000 sq.ft. distribution centre, which will see its first customers this summer, to provide increased capacity to service its growing network of stores in the north west of England.

Juliette Bishop, Tesco's corporate affairs manager, said:

"This venture is an ideal example of how sustainability is at the very core of the Tesco business and it's great that we can demonstrate that our food waste is directly providing power back into our operations, helping us to reduce waste going to landfill and our carbon footprint."

Stobart and PDM will work together to offer Stobart's customer-base comprised of predominantly food retailers, a recycling service. The agreement would see food waste taken in return journey loads, on Stobart vehicles, to Widnes.

The Widnes plant recycles more than 230,000 tonnes of biomass fuels a year to generate renewable combined heat and power using biomass-to-energy technology.

The fuel is derived from food and other bio-wastes produced from every stage of the food chain, from farm to dinner plate.

PDM Croup director Robert Ratcliffe explained:

"Using green power is becoming an important objective for many businesses, however it's extremely rare that such power can come directly from anywhere other than the National Grid. This type of closed-loop biomass-to-energy relationship is rare in the UK and it's great that we can work together to not only help bolster green credentials, but also enable Tesco to demonstrate that any food waste it generates is essentially helping to power its own supply chain."

Get Even More from Bio-waste EU Commission Decides

Yet more good news for the Anaerobic Digestion process as this is bound to mean promotion of the use of the process, so here is the full news release:

New EU Commission Strategy Announced to get Even More from Bio-waste

The European Commission today laid out steps to improve the management of bio-waste in the EU and tap into its significant environmental and economic benefits.

Bio-degradable garden, kitchen and food waste accounts for 88 million tonnes of municipal waste each year and has major potential impacts on the environment. But it also has considerable promise as a renewable source of energy and recycled materials.

Today’s Communication promotes actions to unlock this potential by making the best use of existing legislation while giving Member States discretion to choose the options best suited to their individual circumstances. Supporting initiatives at EU level will also be necessary.

Environment Commissioner Janez Potočnik said: "We already have a significant body of legislation governing bio-waste in the EU. But through better implemention and enforcement, we can squeeze even more benefit from bio-waste. This will not only help in the fight against climate change: producing good quality compost and biogas will contribute to healthy soil and slow biodiversity loss."

Bio-waste is an untapped potential

A Commission assessment has identified significant environmental and economic benefits from improved management of bio-waste in the European Union.

Today’s Communication lays out recommendations on the way forward to reap these benefits in full. The most promising approaches include the prevention of bio-waste and biological treatment with the production of compost and biogas.

The main environmental threat from bio-waste is the production of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide. If biological treatment of waste was maximized, the most visible and significant benefit would be avoided greenhouse gas emissions – estimated at around 10 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2020.

About one-third of the EU's 2020 target for renewable energy in transport could be met by using biogas produced from bio-waste, while around 2% of the EU's overall renewable energy target could be met if all bio-waste was turned into energy.

Good quality compost and digestate from anaerobic digestion would improve resource-efficiency by partially replacing non-renewable mineral fertilizers as well as by maintaining the quality of EU soils.

Full implementation of existing policies supported by improved bio-waste management should deliver environmental and economic benefits estimated at between €1.5 and €7 billion, depending on the ambition of recycling and prevention policies.

Priority actions

According to the Commission's analysis there are no policy gaps at EU level that could prevent Member States from taking appropriate action. Progress achieved in several Member States shows that existing waste legislation is an excellent basis for advanced bio-waste management. For this, the available tools need to be used to their full potential and rigorously enforced where necessary in all Member States.

Priority actions include rigorous enforcement of the targets on diverting bio-waste away from landfills, proper application of the waste hierarchy and other provisions of the Waste Framework Directive to introduce separate collection systems as a matter of priority.

Supporting initiatives at EU level – such as developing standards for compost – will be crucial to accelerate progress and ensure a level playing field across the EU. This will involve specific guidance and indicators for bio-waste prevention with possible future binding targets, as well as compost standards and guidelines on the application of life cycle thinking and assessment in the waste sector.

Bio-waste management in the Member States

Member States have vastly diverging national policies for bio-waste management, ranging from little action in some Member States to ambitious policies in others.

The environmental and economic benefits of different treatment methods for bio-waste depend on local conditions such as population density, climate and infrastructure.

Composting and anaerobic digestion offer the most promising environmental and economic options for bio-waste that cannot be prevented. However, an important pre-condition is good quality input to these processes. In the majority of cases this would be best achieved by separate collection of bio-waste.

Highly efficient systems based on separating various streams of bio-waste already exist in Austria, Germany, Luxembourg, Sweden, Belgium, the Netherlands, Cataluña in Spain and certain regions in Italy.

The Communication on bio-waste is available at:

http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/compost/index.htm

White Paper on Waste and Climate Change: ISWA Very Positive on Anaerobic Digestion's Role in Reducing Waste Industry Emissions

Here is the AD News' summary of the Most Important Points from the new ISWA "White Paper on Waste and Climate Change", for those interested in Anaerobic Digestion.

The climate change phenomenon, its causes and consequences, is now generally accepted and recognised by the international scientific community, governments, the private sector, NGOs and the general population.

It requires a robust response. Solutions must be found that will mitigate emissions of greenhouse gases and help to adapt to its unavoidable consequences. The complexity of the issue requires the acceptance of a common responsibility from both the public and private sector.

The waste industry occupies a unique position as a potential reducer of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. As industries and countries worldwide struggle to address their carbon footprint, waste sector activities represent an opportunity for carbon reduction which has yet to be fully exploited.

The waste sector offers a portfolio of proven, practical and cost effective technologies which can contribute to GHG mitigation. When adapted and deployed according to local traditions and needs, they can help secure significant global GHG emission savings.

The global direct GHG emissions resulting from waste management activities are around 1.3Gt CO2 eq. or approximately 3 – 5% of total anthropogenic emissions in 2005 (IPCC 2007). However, there is now credible evidence that, taking into account associated avoided emissions, the waste sector can completely change this picture.

Through aerobic and anaerobic biological treatment technologies, organic wastes can be recovered and transformed into soil conditioners and fertilisers. These processes reduce GHG emissions by sequestering biogenic carbon in soils, improving soil physical properties, and adding soil nutrients.

The organic component of waste (e.g. paper, cardboard, food waste or garden waste) ranges from 30-70% of total municipal waste production. If collected separately, it can offer a valuable contribution to GHG emissions reduction and soil improvement.

Organics recovery is particularly effective where soil and organic matter are being eroded due to deforestation, cultivation practices, or as a consequence of climate change.

Anaerobic technologies provide an added energy benefit.

Waste offers a significant source of renewable energy. Incineration and other thermal processes for waste-to-energy, landfill gas recovery and utilisation, and use of anaerobic digester biogas can play important roles in reducing fossil fuel consumption and GHG emission.

Accurate measurement and quantification of GHG emissions is vital in order to set and monitor realistic reduction targets at all levels. Current methodologies form a valuable database for assessment of GHG emissions from waste activities, however, improvements are required to adequately represent the full lifecycle of materials and energy.

• IPCC national waste GHG inventory methodologies estimate direct emissions, but do not include indirect emissions and environmental benefits, especially those which impact other sectors.
• Improved, harmonised and transparent approaches for both the direct and indirect emissions associated with waste management activities must be developed to complement existing methodologies.
• More consistent and coordinated data collection is needed to support the improved methodologies and reduce accounting uncertainties.

More about Waste and Climate Change at ISWA.

GWE Biogas Anaerobic Digestion Plant Will Help Businesses Meet Their Obligations

This is what GWE Biogas are saying, and we have no doubt with good reason, while building their new Anaerobic Digestion plant at Sandhill, Driffield, East Yorkshire.

The following has been adapted from their March newsletter:

GWE report being delighted to see that even before operations have begun the plant is being recognised as being highly innovative by external organisations. As a part of the Environmental Transformation Fund programme administered by WRAP on behalf of DEFRA and DECC, GWE’s plant will help the UK deliver an increase in the generation of renewable energy, a reduction in the waste sent to landfill and a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

They explain that their new biogas methane plant will help businesses meet their obligations, because whilst many businesses know that they need to play a part in cutting greenhouse gases, taking action to is not always a simple matter.

However, when the new Sandhill anaerobic digestion facility near Driffield comes online later this year, businesses and organisations who separately collect food waste will be able to make a difference by simply choosing to send their waste to GWE Biogas.

By converting food waste into a stream of biogas, that can then be used to generate either renewable electricity or be used directly as a renewable fuel, GWE Biogas can guarantee customers that they are maximising environmental benefit and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by the maximum amount possible.

In addition, this will often be for less than it costs to send waste to landfill.

Whilst composting processes stop the direct emission of harmful landfill gas to the atmosphere, formed by the decomposition of food waste and other organic materials, this is where the benefit stops.

The anaerobic digestion of food waste has the added value step of producing renewable energy that can displace energy produced from fossil sources.

Each kilowatt hour of grid based electricity produced results in around 500 grams of carbon dioxide emissions and so each kilowatt hour of electricity produced by the
anaerobic digestion process saves 500 grams of carbon emissions.

Visit GWE Biogas at their web site www.gwebiogas.co.uk .

An Anaerobic Digestion Scene Setter and Summary of AD Opportunities

With an ever growing list of subscribers to this blog it is a continuing challenge to provide basic information on the development of biogas production for our latest subscribers.

That is why today I bring you a link to a web site page written by Dr Michael Gell, which in my view, although put up about a year ago, still provides a pretty fair picture of AD technology and market developments plus opportunities.

Here's the introduction to the article, and if you want more, the link is at the bottom of this post:

Supermarkets are trialling anaerobic digestion as a way to generate energy and minimise their waste, and soon the biological process could have a far wider reaching application

With a spate of announcements on anaerobic digestion (AD) – from supermarkets using the biological process to handle their organic waste to the building of a national AD biogas network - something seems to be exercising decision makers. Are those bacteria that digest food waste at last going to be harnessed to their full potential? Dr Michael Gell examines the potential for AD to kick-start the building of an integrated biowaste infrastructure and to become one of the star technologies feeding energy into a renewables supergrid.

Topics discussed are:

What is Anaerobic Digestion?
How does AD work?
AD as a production process
How widely is AD being used?
Recognising the potential for AD
Turning waste into useful products
What are the environmental benefits of AD?
Economic opportunities with AD
What is driving the surge in interest in AD?
Who are the key stakeholders for a national AD infrastructure?
Carbon footprints in the food waste chain
What are the supermarkets doing?
Is AD commercially feasible?
What are the prospects for a renewable gas network?
What innovations might we expect with AD technology?

Go to ClimateChangeCorp.com's AD Page.

Make Digestate from Source Segregated Biowastes Using PAS110 and it isn't a Waste Material

The new PAS110 protocol is good news for those Anaerobic Digestion Plant operators that utilize a solely green waste (eg source segregated garden waste) feed source because UK regulators have been confirming this month that within a set of specific criteria they will not apply formal waste regulatory controls to these digestates.

The suitable waste input list includes:

• Source segregated biowastes
• Biodegradable non-waste materials
• Allows for packaged biowaste.

(See Nina Sweet link below)

This is great news. It means that it is then much easier to use this material as for example a fertilizer, and spread it on land.

When any material is designated as a waste, it is not only the additional burden of the regulatory measures themselves which are essential for compliance with the Waste Regulations. It is also the cost of additional record keeping and monitoring, plus the Waste License fees, which are a big negative for potential users and sellers as well.

I imagine that it will especially help farmers who take in green waste from the local council and wish to produce biogas from it in on-farm digestors.

PAS110 is known as the Quality Protocol for Anaerobic Digestate and it was published in its final form January 2009. In the last few weeks it has received approval by the European Commission.

This reclassification of this type of digestate as a product and not a waste, will no doubt prompt a new generation of biogas digesters of the best kind, using green waste biomass rather than food crops.

The BSI PAS 110 safety standard is however, not entirely free of constraints and there are costs in the necessary monitoring required by the standard to assure the high quality of digestate produced from these biogas digesters.

More information is available at:

The WRAP Anaerobic Digestion PAS110 Guide download page

SEPA Waste regulation web site (Scotland)

AD Centre Wales PAS110 features Nina Sweet's document

Let's Recycle's Anaerobic Digestion page (scroll to the bottom)

Renewable Energy Association UK REA Names Gaynor Hartnell as Chief Executive

The Renewable Energy Association is the largest trade body for renewable energy in the UK and represents all renewable energy technologies.  Gaynor Hartnell, who was formerly Director of Policy at the Association, has just been appointed as Chief Executive.

Mark Candlish, Chair of the REA’s board of directors said;

REA Press release
2010/02/23 16:00:37.374 GMT

“I am delighted to announce the appointment of Gaynor Hartnell as the Association’s new Chief Executive.  Gaynor has been key to the success of the Association since it was founded in 2001, and in the last 10 months has proved herself the natural successor to Philip Wolfe in her interim role as Policy Director.  Not only does Gaynor have an excellent grasp of renewable policy issues, but she is also well respected by industry and government and is an excellent champion for the industry.”

Gaynor Hartnell said;

“I am very much looking forward to leading the Association and building up its membership base.  These are exciting times for the sector.  This has to be the decade of delivery for renewables, the time when deployment ramps up tenfold.  New players will enter and transform the energy market, with the introduction of feed in tariffs this April.  A year later we will finally have financial incentives operating across the whole spectrum of energy applications - power, transport fuels, heat and green gas.  Renewables can then play a full role, with a diverse range of complementary technologies, which together bring wide-ranging benefits.”

The Association will shortly move into much larger offices in the Capital Tower, next to Waterloo Station.  This will facilitate the expansion of services needed to support the rapidly growing renewables industry with information services, proactive policy development, training and networking events.

Paul Thompson has been promoted to Head of Policy.  Paul joined the REA in 2008 to work on transport fuels, and over the past few months has extended his remit to cover the Renewable Heat Incentive and Renewables Obligation.

Prospects for Anaerobic Digestion Remain Positive Despite Failure of Copenhagen Climate Summit

A recent article in the New Civil Engineer magazine, the magazine of the UK’s Institution of Civil Engineers, discusses how now after the failure of the Copenhagen Climate Summit it will be possible to rise to the challenge of complying with UK carbon reduction pledges.

You only have to read the following paragraphs from the above NCE article to realise the enormity of the task ahead even for just the water industry:

The UK government has pledged that emissions of greenhouse gases will be cut by 80% C02 equivalent - measured against 1990 levels - within the next 40 years.

Yet over the same time Britain's population is expected to grow by anywhere from 15% to 30%, per capita water use is rising and it is likely the [water] industry will be required to meet higher quality and environmental standards - all driving up energy consumption. How are companies going to square the circle?

As readers of my Anaerobic Digestion blog, I am sure that you will not want me to dwell upon the negatives, such as the fact that so far almost all we have seen so far has been rhetoric, while UK carbon emissions have continued to rise.

This is despite that fact that we have exported so much of our emissions as our manufacturing industry has declined, in favour of imports. Even the water industry admits to a 10% rise in carbon emissions since 2000.

So, where will we find the huge cuts needed? We will clearly have to go far beyond efficiency savings which might optimistically, for example, within the water industry provide 30% to 45% savings given the right (high) levels of investment needed.

Opportunities to cut carbon further do undoubtedly exist, and to quote the 14 January 2010 NCE article, for the UK Water Industry example, these might comprise:

• demand reduction
• improved design
• adoption of new technologies
• operational improvements
• better management of catchments and drainage systems and
• wider use of renewable energy.

Now those that have experience of Anaerobic Digestion will know that with present technology the potential for the AD industry to provide renewable energy is large enough to be worthwhile, but not that big. Even with a very high rate of adoption AD will not provide enough power to meet the demand as a major contributor to the 80% reduction target. To do that would need a technical revolution.

But, again quoting from the NCE article, Ofwat’s head of Climate Change Policy Mike Keil has said that:

“Looking at the next five to ten years you can say with some certainty there won't be a technical revolution. Certainly there will be innovation contributing to carbon reductions, but not a huge step change".

Beyond 2020 it is possible there will be breakthroughs as research and development bears fruit and new technologies come to maturity.

So, based on current technologies, an 80% reduction looks extremely difficult, if not verging on impossible, to achieve. The lack of hard commitments from the Copenhagen Summit contributes to a feeling that the political commitment to “pledges” far outweighs the ability to deliver, given the enormity of the task ahead.

Nevertheless, it is important that Engineers do push forward where this can be done on the basis of economically justifiable results. That is where the prospects for UK Anaerobic Digestion do look very good indeed.

Again, referring to the Water Industry; In the next investment period the UK water companies will be making the most of the opportunities offered by enhanced sewage sludge digestion technologies to generate high calorific biogas and reduce the final volume of biosolids as waste for disposal. Adding hydrolysis up front before the digester will help to greatly increase the amount of conversion of the total biomass in sludge to methane, for example.

Another development to continue will be that:

"By using biogas to drive combined heat and power engines, enhanced biodigestion offers potential to make sewage treatment works energy self-sufficient," 

says Mott MacDonald head of water regulation Andrew Heather [again quoted here from the NCE article].

Some companies, we are told, are also planning to clean-up biogas so that it can be used as a vehicle fuel or sold into the national gas grid. It will be interesting to report on that in this blog in due course.

In addition to the digestion of their own sewage works sludge some Water Companies are also, we are told, looking to increase energy from biodigestion by supplementing sewage sludge with food and industrial waste.

So, the prospects for Anaerobic Digestion are good, but the big question mark, which continues to become more urgent to answer remains.

Where will the rest of these carbon savings come from, which are so badly needed to plug the huge gap between current reality and an 80% saving?

Answers to Recent Questions About Anaerobic Digestion from the Public

Why Would a Farmer Choose Anaerobic Digestion?

Waste biomass from farming and food-industries, such as slurries and the organic waste from food processing can present a considerable waste disposal problem. Release of large quantities of organic wastes into local water courses or seepage into ground water results in pollution of water courses and water supply. To prevent this occurring, the biomass needs to be treated and suitably stored and Anaerobic Digestion is a great way to achieve this.

Biogas is produced by the natural microbial degradation under anaerobic conditions. This technique has been applied to agricultural wastes world-wide on a small scale. Treating the waste by AD gives some environmental benefits, and in addition to AD also results in energy, in the form of biogas. Biogas is an inflammable gas, which can easily be used to generate electricity and heat. The potential benefits are many from on-farm and local use of fossil fuels and provision of energy within rural communities.

Some commentators have said that in addition to energy production, there is considerable potential for Anaerobic Digestion to assist in centrally managing the distribution of plant nutrients in manures, together with minimising biosecurity risks (ie pathogen kill).

Where is Anaerobic Digestion Most Popular?

In countries such as Denmark, Sweden, Germany, Austria and Switzerland there are many examples of co-digestion of farm manure with other suitable organic wastes in prefabricated digestors. There is a large interest in this option in these countries and in other countries both inside and outside the EU.

The most successful digesters utilize all energy produced. The most efficient use of biogas is direct heating. If biogas is burned in an electric generator, the heat produced by the engine must be harnessed and used in order to achieve optimum efficiency. The electricity produced can be used on site or sold into the power grid.

What Happens to the Sludge After the AD Process?

Once the digestion process is complete, the digested manure, or effluent, is released from the digester and stored until it is land applied. The digestion process breaks down many of the solids contained in the manure. As a result, the effluent causes less stress on pumps and agitation equipment than manure does. Also, effluent is homogeneous and may not require agitation prior to land application.

Many agri-food AD systems are located on farms. Farm-based AD systems work well with liquid manure. AD systems provide a valuable manure treatment option, since most other economically effective manure treatment systems (such as composting) require solid materials with dry matter greater than 30%.

What are the Most Popular AD Types of Plants?

Biogas from biomass has historically been used in Asia as a fuel for household uses such as cooking. Denmark and Germany have many modern digesters operating on farms and in central locations using materials such as manure, energy crops, and food-based products and byproducts. These systems typically use biogas to produce electricity and heat.

Anaerobic digestion (AD) plants can be on-farm units, designed to deal with manures and other organic materials produced at farm level. Alternatively, AD plants can be designed as centralised units to deal with products from a number of farms, along with co-digestion of organic materials from other industries.

AD plants can include mechanical separation of fibrous solids from the digestate that, after further processing, can give a value added product, such as compost or pellets (fertiliser or combustible fuel).

How Would I recognise an Anaerobic Digestion Plant if I Saw One?

Anaerobic Digesters themselves are completely sealed vessels which are covered and sealed. Most are insulated and heated, and the digester is an immediatelely recognisable feature at most large biogas plants as a large tall, usually vertical sided, circular tank, with an access ladder and a number of pipes leading to the top where there is also usually a pedestrian access way and handrail.

Biogas plant digesters of this type can usually be spotted very easily when you see them by the characteristic pairing of the digester with the biogas storage tank which acts like a traditional town gas ‘gasometer’, and is usually elegantly curved or “globe” shaped. Many visibly expand and contract to accommodate the volume of biogas present, the result is that most of them become significant landmark features.

Anaerobic Digestion Technologies to Get Help Through Feed-in-Tariffs

The following has been posted in MRW, and is great news for the future of UK AD.

Financial support for anaerobic digestion
Liz Gyekye, 02 Feb 2010

The Government has announced ambitious plans to provide financial support for anaerobic digestion technologies through feed-in-tariffs (FITs) and the “world’s first” renewable heat incentive scheme.

The schemes are designed to bring about a significant increase in the amount of locally produced green energy and help the UK meet its renewable energy targets.

FITs is a financial support system that will incentivise small scale low-carbon electricity generation by providing “clean energy cashback” for householders, communities and businesses. It will work alongside the Renewables Obligation, which will remain the primary mechanism to incentivise deployment of large-scale renewable electricity generation.

The FITs scheme will start from April 1 and will support new AD plants with a five megawatts limit capacity. The scheme will also support the first 30,000 combined heat and power installations with an electrical capacity of two kilowatts or less, as a pilot programme.

Under the FITs scheme AD operators will be paid for every kilowatt hour of electricity generated and metered by a generator. Farm scale AD operators, producing less than 500kW a year will get 11.5 pence/kWh per year over a 20 year period. AD operators producing more than 500KW will get 9p/kWh.

Speaking at the launch of the FITs scheme in London [February 1], Energy Minister Lord Hunt told MRW that he thought the FITs would encourage more AD plants to be built. He said: “I think that we have made an adjustment in order to make small scale AD more attractive. I think that the farming community will be very welcoming of this news. I very much hope that we will see a big market growing for AD.”

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband added: “Where there is muck there is brass!
“The FIT will change the way householders and communities think about their future energy needs, making the payback for investment far shorter than in the past.”

The Government also launched its consultation on the RHI scheme [February 1].

The RHI scheme is a financial support mechanism for individuals, communities and businesses that aims to incentivise low carbon heating and will be introduced in April 2011.

Under the RHI scheme, the proposed tariff for solid biomass technology operators will be 9p/kWh, biogas on-site combustion plants will get 5.5p/kWh and biomethane injection technology will get 4p/kWh.

Solid biomass can include municipal wastes and biogas can be upgraded to biomethane, which has similar thermal characteristics to natural gas and can be injected into the grid.
Where a plant can generate heat from both renewable and non-renewable fuels, the RHI tariff will only reward the renewable component of the mixed fuel load. The RHI consultation stated that this will usually involve combined heat and power using energy-from-waste.

Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association chair Lord Redesdale said that he was disappointed at the Government’s announcements on FIT and RHI. He said the Government had “horlicked” the whole thing. He explained: “It is unfortunate that the tariff has come in at nine pence which shows a distinct lack of enthusiasm. We thought it was going to be more than this and were hoping for 13p.

“To meet our climate change and renewable energy targets we need as much AD as we can possibly muster. Both the RHI and FITS have not met expectations from industry.

“The purpose of the tariff is to encourage entry in the market place but this is not going to be the case because the tariffs are too low. How many plants will be built out of this next year on this basis? If there is not enough plant going to be built you question whether the whole thing has been a success or not.”

Lord Redesdale also said that the AD industry was concerned with the issue of “grandfathering” of Renewable Obligation Certificates (see MRW story).Government is likely to alter tariffs for new levels for new projects from time to time to respond to changes in technology costs. However, once installation of a project has been completed, investors will consider it important that its support levels are not changed. Such a guarantee not to change support for existing projects is known as grandfathering.

At the moment biomass technologies, such as AD, are not protected through grandfathering.

However, the RHI consultation states: “We are nevertheless inclined to provide the RHI tariffs as grandfathered tariffs.” More...

US Climate Bill Setback and Clean Development Rethink on Renewable Energy Developments

All those interested in Anaerobic digestion and how demand for the technology might increase over the next few years have no doubt been watching the news on the post Copenhagen Summit devlopments, keenly.

Clearly, the way the US acts now will be important for the prospects of continuation after 2012 of Carbon Credit schemes under the "Clean Development Mechanism", such as the EU ETS. The growth of Anaerobic Digestion based technology utilisation is assured in many developed nations, but I would also would expect to see a surge of advanced technology based AD Plant development in the industrializing nations once the post 2012 Climate Emission Reductions (CERs) become tradable.

The following is a 22 January Reuters post, which provides an update on the US scene:

LONDON (Reuters) - Still reeling from disappointing UN climate talks in Copenhagen in December, clean energy project developers were dealt another blow this week when U.S. Democrats lost their Senate supermajority, potentially killing a federal cap-and-trade scheme for years to come.

Although the passage of a U.S. bill to cap greenhouse gas emissions in 2010 was far from certain, the election of a Republican in Massachusetts to the Senate on Tuesday derailed any momentum President Obama had following his healthcare push toward introducing a cap-and-trade scheme this year.

This, coupled with a disappointing UN climate summit in the Danish capital last month where leaders from over 190 countries failed to agree a legally-binding pact to succeed the Kyoto Protocol, is causing concern for some clean energy project developers and forcing them to reassess their game plan.

"I'm not as bullish as I was a year ago," said Sascha Lafeld, an executive board member at First Climate AG. "The U.S. pre-compliance market is cautiously developing, so our strategy is also one of caution ... We're on hold, we'll keep our two U.S. offices open but we're not expanding this year."

Frankfurt-based First Climate has a global project portfolio of some 250 projects, including around 20 projects in the U.S., that generate carbon offsets by cutting carbon dioxide.

Observers say the spotlight in the U.S. now shifts back to state and regional schemes launched by a handful of states during George W. Bush's presidency, when the prospect of a federal U.S. carbon market was a distant mirage.

"It's not ideal but we welcome this as a fallback solution," said Alexander Sarac of JP Morgan-owned EcoSecurities, one of the world's biggest aggregators of carbon offsets.

For the full article visit:

http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE60L4DE20100122

Manure to Become Megawatts in Newcastle University Project

A £1.85M project looking at techniques of converting farm waste products into electricity is to go ahead in the North East.

A state-of-the-art anaerobic digester which converts manure from pigs and cattle into green electricity is arranged for being installed at Cockle Park Farm by Newcastle College thanks to an £860,000 cash injection from regional improvement agency One North East.

The idea is one of assisting farms turn into far more sustainable businesses, the goal is to join with North East farmers, land managers and other associated organisations to find new means for making renewable electric from waste material.

Ths project is joint funded by the college and One North East through its Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE), the anaerobic digester will form a portion on the new Centre for Renewable Energy from Land (CREEL) launched by Newcastle University.

The promoters of this project have put in a good deal of work which has gone into arranging this challenge up to this point, so they say that it is extremely thrilling to have at last received both funding and 3rd party permission for this project.

Anaerobic digestion presents enormous potential in terms of utilizing the methane from animal waste materials and converting it into renewable electric power which will be utilized to heat and supply energy to the buildings on the farm.

By working together using the agricultural business they hope to produce a new means of producing anaerobic digestion and viable technology for uptake by farms throughout the UK.

The residual digestate might be applied being a soil conditioner and a nutrient source and offers considerable probable for farmers to reduce their fertilizer budget. Read more here...

Mechanical Biological Treatment Process with AD Explained

The New Civil Engineer magazine has published (19 November edition 2009) a refreshingly down to earth description of the process which will soon start to mechanically and biologically treat a part of Manchester’s residual (black bag) Municipal Solid Waste (MSW). The following was stated by Peter Harvey in his role as the Business Director of Enpure (Process Engineering). Enpure is the encumbent EPC Contractor, in the Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority’s huge city-wide PFI waste management contract.

This multi-billion contract was finally let around about last Easter after extended delays, and not least the problems caused by the credit crunch last Autumn. Under this Contract, Enpure is the EPC Contractor which will provide processing facilities for the PPP Consortium Laing Viridor to operate two MBT Facilities to be built at Reliance Street and Bredbury, under a £57 million Contract.

(In MBT there is always a choice to be made between composting to reduce the activity of the organic material before it goes to landfill, which is of dubious merit, or Anaerobic Digestion which does a better job but requires more investment and some risk of not repaying that investment. - Added by your Blogmaster)

"There are a number of ways that you can biologically treat that [smaller fraction], composting for example, or anaerobic digestion which can then create methane for electricity production. That particular approach [anaerobic digestion] is what we have on our two MBT projects," says Peter Harvey.

The process begins at the materials recovery facility (MRF) whereby black bag [mixed residual] waste (MSW) goes through a very coarse shredder that reduces waste to 250mm to 300mm pieces. At that point the waste is screened and material of less than 80mm (the organic fraction) goes off for anaerobic digestion.

But first it needs further separation. "If we didn't clean it up then grit, pieces of plastic and bits of rubble could cause blockages so we have a very sophisticated wet separation process called the hydro-pulper".

It is this pulper which has not been used before in the UK. It comes from German firm BTA International. "It is a vessel with a high speed impeller in the centre that will transfer any organic material, paper, cardboard, food and organic matter into a sludge, which we can then pass through a screen and into the digesters," says Phil Harvey.

Just under 5MW of electricity will be generated by the Reliance Street and Bredbury facilities to fuel the MBT process and feed back into the grid. "Between these two facilities there is enough to power 10,000 homes from the biogas alone.

As for the larger components, these are sorted for recycling in the case of metals and plastics, or for sending on as Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) to Runcorn [for incineration].

The fraction above 80mm is then put through a density separation process so that we can eliminate any hardcore material from that size fraction.

Then there is metals removal. After this it is shredded to 30mm ready for RDF production.

We also have an air knife which blows off plastics into the RDF as well.

At Reliance Street the treatment process will handle 100,000t of waste per annum, but only 63,000t of this will go through the MBT plant. The rest, larger particles over 45mm, is sorted out and sent off for recycling.


"The only real difference between the two sites is the degree of sorting that happens before the wet preparation stage," says Peter Harvey.


Of course with plants handling so much waste material and especially the Anaerobic Digestion present, there has clearly and quite understandably been much concern about odours.

Because Reliance Street is right in the city it uses a sophisticated odour control process called regenerative thermal oxidation. The odour is collected via ducts and blown into the treatment system which uses heat in the presence of a catalyst to thermally oxidise the odorous compounds in the air. The heat from the treated air is captured using silicon tiles.

"Bredbury has a more conventional odour system, we operate the buildings under negative pressure so that if there are any leaks they go into the building rather than out and all that air is treated with biofilters," says Peter Harvey.

Exciting Opportunities Arising from UK Government Low Carbon Strategy

The following is an extract from the Enviros Consulting September 2009 Briefing Note on the UK's Low Carbon Strategy:

The UK government has announced a number of financial drivers and measures to remove barriers to deployment of more renewables, as part of their low carbon strategy.

This rapidly growing industry will bring opportunities for many of our customers. Nonfinancial measures include a new planning PPS, measures to improve grid access and a new Office for Renewable Energy Deployment.

However the main drivers announced are the financial ones outlined below.

The Renewables Heat Incentive

- The Renewables Heat Incentive will deliver a staggering 72TWh/yr of heat by 2020 from biomass, solar, heat pumps and biomethane
- The policy to be in place from April 2011
- It will give guaranteed payments to those generating heat from renewables – domestic through to industrial scales
- We should expect a fixed rate paid on energy yield and cost of plant – not on CO2 emissions saved

UK Government will consult at the end of this year on scheme details and on fundamentals including levels of funding and how the levy to fund it will work

Installations from 15 July 2009 onwards will qualify for payments though there will be environmental standards and a qualification scheme for installers.

Measures to support electricity from renewables

The plans for financial support for renewable electricity has been presented in a separate consultation paper

Renewable Electricity Financial Incentives.

There are some detailed changes to the Renewables Obligation (ROC) regime that will impact larger generators and are designed to bolster confidence in this support mechanism.

However, perhaps the most significant announcement is of a new mechanism known as Feed in Tariffs (FIT).

As presented in the consultation paper FITs:

• Will give significant payments to small scale renewables – up to 5MW but with much higher payments for micro-renewables
• Will come into operation from April 2010 with consultation closing Oct 09 (though schemes built from 15 July 2009 will qualify)
• Will support delivery of up to 2% of our electricity by 2020
• Will pay the tariff for every unit of generation (whether used on site or not) aiming to give investors 5-8% internal rate of return (IRR)
• A FIT contract would be for 20 years, index linked and transferable from person to person
• Fix the price that will be paid for power exported at reasonable level (5p/kWh suggested)
• Will be paid by those supplying the site with electricity to the site of generation.

Payments proposed are much higher than anything seen in the UK so far.

For example a householder installing a retrofit domestic scale solar panel would get 36.5p/kWh for all the generation from the panel, would enjoy free electricity from it while using it and would get a suggested 5p/kWh for electricity exported (income tax free).

Other Opportunities

The Low Carbon Transport Strategy and the Low Carbon Industrial Strategy will give other opportunities to those sectors of the industry.

The transport strategy proposes that the proportion of biofuels being blended with petrol and diesel be increased to 10% by 2020 in line with the EU directive.

This is a huge increase in the amount of liquid biofuels required and could offer opportunities for farmers.

However, it is recognised that there are potentially negative food security and environmental issues associated with this policy and we can expect increasingly stringent controls on sourcing of liquid biofuels.

The transport strategy also outlines measures to reduce transport emissions by:

• Improving the efficiency of new vehicles (cars, vans and buses)
• Electrifying more of the rail network
• Facilitating the use of electric vehicles – including the offer of financial support to purchase them
• Encouraging more walking, cycling and low carbon travel habits • Working on international agreements on shipping and aviation.

The Low Carbon Industrial Strategy recognises the opportunities for UK industry and commerce. To maximise the opportunities, the government intends to remove barriers to making the changes and has announced £405 million of support:

• £120 million will be used to develop offshore wind
• £60 million to develop wave and tidal power
• £6 million to contract “60 or more” low carbon affordable homes
• £10 million increase, from £20 million to £30 million, for electric vehicle charging infrastructure and £25 million Low Carbon Vehicle Demonstrator Programme • £4 million expansion of the Manufacturing Advisory Service
• £12 million for green chemicals/sustainable biotechnology
• £15 million nuclear advanced manufacturing research centre
• £150 million for UK Innovation Investment Fund -> £1billion in 10 years.

How Enviros can help

This is an exciting time for initiatives in the low carbon sector and with these recent papers, the Government’s direction and support is now clear.

With the ‘step change’ represented by these papers some projects that were not previously viable now may well be. Enviros have over 30 years of experience in this field so have the skills, knowledge and expertise needed to be able to support you as you work to make the ‘low carbon transition’ needed or capitalise on the opportunities presented, whether you are working in the public or the private sector.

Get your FREE copy of the full Low Carbon Strategy briefing document here.

Scottish Government and Scottish Renewables Calls for UK Treasury to Release Millions to Invest in Renewable Energy

Support for access to renewables cash grows

Scottish Renewables have joined the Scottish Government in calling for the UK Treasury to release up to £174 million to invest in renewable energy.

The money is currently held by Ofgem under the Fossil Fuel Levy arrangements, which mean the Scottish Government is unable to access the cash without a corresponding reduction in its budget.

Finance Secretary John Swinney has argued for the fund to be made available as additional money over and above the Scottish budget since this administration came to office in 2007.

And today the cause will gain the support of Scottish Renewables, when Niall Stuart, chief executive of the green energy trade body, addresses a marine energy conference in Inverness.

Mr Swinney said:

"This is £174 million of Scotland's money that should be invested in developing renewable energy in Scotland right now.

"Instead, the unwillingness of the UK Treasury to change its position means it is sitting unused in an Ofgem bank account in London. Scottish Renewables are absolutely right to be calling on the Chancellor to release this money so that it is additional to the budget already at our disposal.

"I welcome their position and can assure them we speak as one on this issue. It simply makes no sense that, at a time when the parlous state of the UK's public finances is well documented, and when Scotland is facing a 500 million pounds cut in its budget next year, this money is withheld and only available if we accept a corresponding reduction in Scotland's budget.

"Scotland has a flourishing renewable energy sector that could benefit hugely from this additional money.

"This Government is doing all it can to help - but with access to this funding we could do even more. That would not only bring the clear benefits of developing cutting edge renewable technologies, but would also support green jobs and help stimulate a strong economic recovery."

The Fossil Fuel Levy (FFL) is used to compensate power companies for the higher costs involved in meeting the terms of contracts to purchase renewable electricity, awarded during the 1990s under the previous support mechanism, the Non-Fossil Fuel Obligation (NFFO).

Changes introduced in 2005, which allowed the proceeds from the sale of Renewables Obligation Certificates (ROCs) attributable to Scottish NFFO contracts to be used to meet the FFL costs have led to the development of a rapidly accumulating surplus in Ofgem's bank accounts (the Scotland and England/Wales accounts being held separately).

Scottish Ministers and officials have raised this matter with UK Government counterparts on a continuous basis since May 2007. Treasury rules on Departmental Expenditure Limits (DEL) mean that FFL surplus resources, if released to Scotland, would not be additional to Scotland's block grant. To enable FFL funds to be used for additional activity in Scotland would require the Treasury's agreement to increase Scottish DEL equivalent to the amount being drawn down from the FFL. The Treasury remains adamant that should Scottish Ministers choose to draw down this money, a corresponding reduction would be made in the Scottish block grant.

Full articles at the Scottish Government web site.

Waste Produces Gas for Cooking in Kenya Using Anaerobic Digestion

This item shows how anaerobic digestion can be such a power for good. It brightened my day and I hope it does the same for yours as well. It explains how biogas is being used to solve a number of problems simultaneously in Kenyan slums.

Harnessing Waste Produces Gas for Cooking in Kenya
By Cathy Majtenyi
Kenya
From Voice of America News - 07 November 2009

The scourge of so-called "flying toilets" - where human waste is put into a plastic bag and tossed into the air, landing on roads or in gutters - has plagued the slums of Kenya's capital Nairobi for decades. But an innovative project in the slum of Kibera has dramatically cut down on the problem by converting human waste into gas that can be used to fuel cookers and other devices.

Roseline Amondi is cooking up a storm. Today's menu for the tiny restaurant she runs is githeri, a traditional dish consisting of beans and maize.

Amondi cooks every day in this community kitchen. She will then take the food back to her kiosk to sell to her customers. She says the community stove saves her a lot of money that she would otherwise spend on charcoal or wood.

"Before the gas started working, I was using almost 100 or 200 [shillings] per day for cooking any meal in the house, but right now, it is only 10 bob [shillings] per meal," she said. "It is very cheap. If I cook two different types of food, I may use only 30 shillings for the whole day. That is wonderful."

The gas that Amondi uses comes from an unlikely source, the community toilet. This is a rare sight in Kibera, where up to 200 people can share a single latrine in neighborhoods that have no electricity or running water.

The toilet and kitchen are run by a coalition of five community groups calling themselves TOSHA (Total Sanitation and Hygiene Access). "Tosha" also means "enough" in the national language Ki'Swahili.

Some 600 people a day use the toilets for a small fee.

The human waste is transported via pipes into an underground tank, where it is converted into bio-gas.

The gas is then piped up to the community kitchen, where members can use the stove for pennies per pot.

Groups often rent out the facility's top floor for meetings and functions. TOSHA earns some $400 each month renting out the facility, the community kitchen and use of the toilets.

Aidah Binale is a coordinator with Umande Trust, a development group that partnered with TOSHA to formulate the project.

She says it was difficult at first for community members to accept the gas.

"People will have the idea of, 'Ah, no, I can't cook from there, it is from [human] waste.' Right now we are still trying to capacity build, we are trying to tell them [there is] nothing wrong," she explained. "We get to have more visitors from different countries coming to visit us. We make sure that when they come to the office, we tell them, 'Let's go down there and have tea.' So when the community comes and sees us drinking tea, they are thinking, 'Ah, this is a foreigner taking tea. These people are taking tea, we can also cook.'"

Running water and sanitation facilities are virtually non-existent in slums like Kibera, where most people earn less than $1 a day. Human waste in plastic bags is often dumped on roads, alleys and gutters.

But locals say there has been a dramatic reduction in these so-called "flying toilets" since the bio-gas center was constructed two years ago.

Roseline Amondi is also secretary of TOSHA.

"At the time we were using flying toilets, there were so many diseases around us like cholera," she noted. "Once an outbreak of cholera occurs, we are the sufferer. Many of us died, some got into the hospitals. But right now, for the last three months, there was an outbreak [of cholera] within Nairobi, but we were safe because of the bio-center."

Project supporters say the TOSHA Bio-Gas Centre is a model for communities everywhere, especially those dealing with power shortages.

Paul Muchire, communication manager with Umande Trust.

"We have the problem of [supplying enough] energy. Poverty levels are going up. Sanitation is a problem in the developing world. We have the issue of pollution from the oil and diesel. There is need to go into other sources of energy, adapt other sources of energy that would be environmentally friendly," he said.

Muchire says there are about 10 bio-gas centers in Kibera under construction and that an engineer is looking at how the gas can be piped into peoples' homes.

Anaerobic Digestion Has Big Role in Zero Waste Britain Announcement

The path to Britain becoming a zero waste nation was announced last week by Environment Secretary Hilary Benn at a summit of Local Authorities and the waste industry.

Hilary Benn said:

"We need to rethink how we view and treat waste in the UK. Why do we send valuable items like aluminium and food waste to landfill when we can turn them into new cans and renewable energy? Why use more resources than we need to in manufacturing? We must now work together to build a zero waste nation - where we reduce the resources we use, reuse and recycle all that we can and only landfill things that have absolutely no other use.

"To do this all of us - government, local authorities, businesses and consumers - must do our bit. And we must make this moment the turning point on our journey to eliminate wasteful waste.”

During a morning visit to Earls Court, Mr Benn showed his support for an updated BSI sustainable event standard which is designed to ensure that the events industry considers the social, economic and environmental impacts of their events.

Mr Benn continued:

"Using new technologies will help us to re-use things, for example anaerobic digestion that creates energy from food and farm waste. And businesses can apply the technology at their fingertips to design innovative products that use less resources or contain recycled materials.

"In ten years time 75 per cent of household waste will either be recycled or used for energy, and over time this figure will increase even further. Aiming for zero waste is the way we have to think to get us to where we need to be."

Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government John Denham added:

"If we continue to send recyclable or compostable waste to landfill we are missing a major opportunity to generate heat and energy and missing an opportunity to turn that waste into money. We can save planet whilst keeping money in resident’s pockets.

“I have recently set out ambitions for councils to play a bigger role in tackling climate change and thinking more creatively about waste is just one way to unlock that potential.”

Setting out how the UK can become a zero waste nation where people can do the right thing with their waste whether at work, home or on the move, Mr Benn said:

* England should more than halve the amount of waste going to landfill in the next 10 years – early next year we will consult on what recyclable and compostable items should be banned from landfill and how a ban will work.
* In ten years time 75 per cent of household waste will either be recycled or used for energy, and over time this figure will increase even further.
* Six new Zero Waste Places in parts of Shropshire, Dorchester, Brixton, Newham, Hoxton and Suffolk will be created to develop innovative ideas to cut waste in the home, workplace and community.
* A new Zero Waste Places Standard for Local Authorities will also recognise areas which are going above and beyond national waste targets while supporting them with small grants for further development.
* New research out today shows it is possible to divert 500,000 tonnes of household waste per year through re-using it.
* Later this month a new public campaign will be launched, aimed at encouraging people to rethink their approach to waste by reducing and reusing the waste they create as well continuing to recycle as much as they can.
* The Government expects Local Authorities to offer a full collection service for all recyclable items by 2020. This should include paper, card, cans, glass and plastic bottles, food and packaging. We will encourage Local Authorities in collecting food waste to make use of the technology and funding available to them to harness the power of energy from waste.
* Publication of our aims and actions for Commercial and Industrial Waste in England. This will help businesses to use resources more efficiently and encourage them to think about what they do with their waste as well as delivering benefits for the environment. Actions cover four areas: helping business; working with the waste management industry; plugging the data gap; and encouraging innovative approaches.