A Heartening Tale of How Anaerobic Digestion is Improving Life in a Kenyan Slum; from Voice of America
By Cathy Majtenyi
Kenya
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.
08 November 2009
22 October 2009
Government Announces Big Role for Anaerobic Digestion for Zero Waste UK Nation in Future
The path to Britain becoming a zero waste nation was today announced 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.
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.
30 September 2009
Aerobic Digestion Technology Company Monsal Announces Completion of Planning Phase For Their New Food Waste Digester
More good news for the development of AD in the UK:
Monsal Ltd (Monsal), the specialist environmental technology company dedicated to providing advanced technology solutions for the water and waste sectors, through backing by Matrix Private Equity Partners, has completed the first phase of planning, pre-design, permitting and support services for an advanced food Anaerobic Digestion (AD) and renewable energy contract for a plant to be located in March, Cambridgeshire.
The publicity provided by Monsal informs us that the project will generate sufficient electricity to supply 1,500 homes, or approximately 6% of the total demand for March, including that from industry and commerce. By so doing Local Generation will help the Fenland authority play a big part in meeting the UK target of 10% of power generated from renewable sources by 2010 and the EU target of 20% of all energy from renewables by 2020.
A highly optimized plant such as this can capture over 80% of the energy content of its fuel. The project is for Local Generation Limited, a subsidiary of Lifecrown Investments Limited and will be located on land owned by Lifecrown and adjacent to Local Generation’s sister company Fenmarc Produce, a leading vegetable food packager and processor. Monsal expects to deliver the turnkey AD contract once permits are in place in late 2009 and the project will progress into the construction phase in early 2010.
Food waste from a range of food businesses and some potato waste from Fenmarc will be processed and recycled by the latest Monsal technology to provide high grade compost and generate renewable energy from biogas. This will divert food waste from landfill and lower emissions of harmful greenhouse gases in the process.
The plant is expected to produce up to 2.5MW of electricity and heat from a combination of potato waste produced at the Fenmarc site and other locally sourced food waste, which currently goes to landfill. Local Generation intends to sell both the power and heat to local homes and businesses, including Fenmarc. In addition to these outputs, the plant will produce up to 12,000 tonnes a year of high quality soil conditioner suitable for improving local Fenland soils. The plant will create some 10 to 15 new jobs once operational and is the largest plant planned in the region.
Mark Harrod, Chairman of Lifecrown said:
Monsal offer a complete turnkey service from consultation, planning, design, permitting with subsequent technology delivery once planning permission and permits are in place.
On receipt of planning approval for the March plant on 17th September, Local Generation director Nick Waterman said “We are delighted that Local Generation Limited has today been granted planning permission for its AD plant at Westry, March.
We are very excited at the prospect of contributing positively to the environment by reducing waste to landfill and lowering emissions of harmful greenhouse gases in the process. The UK Government wants businesses like ours to invest and create new jobs in green technologies as well as deliver sustainable solutions and that is exactly what we are going to do.
This is a great day for Local Generation and our team is looking forward to building the plant. We hope that people in March, Fenland and Cambridgeshire will be very proud to have one of the first AD plants in the UK operating in the region.”
Aidan Cumiskey Monsal’s Managing Director said:
Commenting on the success of the planning process: “Planning was achieved in record time for this project. It was the result of our co-operative and very detailed approach to the planning/permitting process. We support biowaste AD projects from concept through financial close and subsequent delivery having the largest specialist team in the UK in this area. We operated as an integrated team working with Local Generation and the regulatory authorities to ensure the project and technology complies with all relevant environmental standards. This avoided abortive work and ensures that the overall solution can be fast tracked into the construction phase with a guaranteed delivery cost.”
The biowaste to energy concept is now being widely applied for the conversion of commercial and household food waste to biogas. The Monsal technology platform is well established and has been operational on large food waste and household kitchen waste treatment and recycling plants for over 10 years in other countries in Europe.
Monsal Ltd (Monsal), the specialist environmental technology company dedicated to providing advanced technology solutions for the water and waste sectors, through backing by Matrix Private Equity Partners, has completed the first phase of planning, pre-design, permitting and support services for an advanced food Anaerobic Digestion (AD) and renewable energy contract for a plant to be located in March, Cambridgeshire.
The publicity provided by Monsal informs us that the project will generate sufficient electricity to supply 1,500 homes, or approximately 6% of the total demand for March, including that from industry and commerce. By so doing Local Generation will help the Fenland authority play a big part in meeting the UK target of 10% of power generated from renewable sources by 2010 and the EU target of 20% of all energy from renewables by 2020.
A highly optimized plant such as this can capture over 80% of the energy content of its fuel. The project is for Local Generation Limited, a subsidiary of Lifecrown Investments Limited and will be located on land owned by Lifecrown and adjacent to Local Generation’s sister company Fenmarc Produce, a leading vegetable food packager and processor. Monsal expects to deliver the turnkey AD contract once permits are in place in late 2009 and the project will progress into the construction phase in early 2010.
Food waste from a range of food businesses and some potato waste from Fenmarc will be processed and recycled by the latest Monsal technology to provide high grade compost and generate renewable energy from biogas. This will divert food waste from landfill and lower emissions of harmful greenhouse gases in the process.
The plant is expected to produce up to 2.5MW of electricity and heat from a combination of potato waste produced at the Fenmarc site and other locally sourced food waste, which currently goes to landfill. Local Generation intends to sell both the power and heat to local homes and businesses, including Fenmarc. In addition to these outputs, the plant will produce up to 12,000 tonnes a year of high quality soil conditioner suitable for improving local Fenland soils. The plant will create some 10 to 15 new jobs once operational and is the largest plant planned in the region.
Mark Harrod, Chairman of Lifecrown said:
“The success of our group companies in Fenland for 40 years has been founded on the strategic location and the skills and work ethic of the local workforce. In making this further substantial investment I am confident that these factors will, once again, get us off to a flying start. This project addresses two of today’s most pressing problems; climate change and food waste management. By treating energy as a precious resource we can maximise value for all concerned.”
Monsal offer a complete turnkey service from consultation, planning, design, permitting with subsequent technology delivery once planning permission and permits are in place.
On receipt of planning approval for the March plant on 17th September, Local Generation director Nick Waterman said “We are delighted that Local Generation Limited has today been granted planning permission for its AD plant at Westry, March.
We are very excited at the prospect of contributing positively to the environment by reducing waste to landfill and lowering emissions of harmful greenhouse gases in the process. The UK Government wants businesses like ours to invest and create new jobs in green technologies as well as deliver sustainable solutions and that is exactly what we are going to do.
This is a great day for Local Generation and our team is looking forward to building the plant. We hope that people in March, Fenland and Cambridgeshire will be very proud to have one of the first AD plants in the UK operating in the region.”
Aidan Cumiskey Monsal’s Managing Director said:
“This is a great result for Local Generation and Cambridgeshire. Lifecrown are a forward thinking group and the plant will neatly integrate local biowaste recycling with on site renewable energy production and create additional employment in the Cambridgeshire/Peterborough area. Based on our latest technology the plant can treat a large variety of biowaste streams including kitchen and household food waste and convert them to renewable energy. This is our first major success with the food sector and we expect continued uptake as a “greening” of the UK food industry supply chain takes place in the coming years.”
Commenting on the success of the planning process: “Planning was achieved in record time for this project. It was the result of our co-operative and very detailed approach to the planning/permitting process. We support biowaste AD projects from concept through financial close and subsequent delivery having the largest specialist team in the UK in this area. We operated as an integrated team working with Local Generation and the regulatory authorities to ensure the project and technology complies with all relevant environmental standards. This avoided abortive work and ensures that the overall solution can be fast tracked into the construction phase with a guaranteed delivery cost.”
The biowaste to energy concept is now being widely applied for the conversion of commercial and household food waste to biogas. The Monsal technology platform is well established and has been operational on large food waste and household kitchen waste treatment and recycling plants for over 10 years in other countries in Europe.
24 September 2009
New National Association Launched to Promote Best Practice and Uptake of Anaerobic Digestion in UK
A new trade association for the Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas industries was launched last week at the Dairy Event with the ambitious goal of having 1,000 plants in place across the UK by 2015.
Monsal, the UKs leading anaerobic digestion provider is one of the 10 founding members of the association.
“The aims of the new association will be to promote anaerobic digestion amongst the farming community and to local authorities,” Lord Redesdale, the chief executive of the ADBA said at the launch of the new association.
The ADBA believes that more than 1,000 anaerobic digestion plants will be built in the UK.
The association plans to have secured £1 billion in managed funds to finance anaerobic digestion in the UK by 2010 and Lord Redesdale said the cost of building the required number of plants will be £5 billion.
The industry in the coming years is expected to be employing more than 20,000 people.
“AD is the renewable technology that will do most to fight greenhouse gas emission from fossil fuels and providing good economic returns that are built on proven technology,” Lord Redesdale added.
ADBA Mission statement
The ADBA (Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association) is focused on the education, development and quality standards associated with all aspects of the anaerobic digestion of waste products and the resulting biogas as a renewable energy resource.
The Association recognises the importance of combining our experience in technology, building products, safety and the efficient use of resources whilst also benefiting from work carried out by others over the years.
Members from all aspects of the waste and renewable communities are welcome to share our aims for the development of anaerobic digestion and biogas.
The ADBA is to develop biogas as one of the UK’s major sources of energy within 10 years.
Looking to the future
ADBA, the trade association for the biogas industries, now represents all those involved in the design and build of the biogas infrastructure of Britain. Biogas will provide a significant percentage of Britain’s gas, easing the problem of energy security and also reducing the fossil fuel content of the gas and electricity grid.
ADBA plans to create the environment in which over 1000 plants are built in Britain. Five billion pounds will need to be raised from the private sector to fund construction. This is expected to create some 20,000 jobs.
The UK’s imminent dependence on imported gas means that gas prices will rise. The significant potential of biogas will lower the overall price of gas and will be a tool in fighting fuel poverty
Dorian Harrison Technical Director from Monsal who sits on the board on the new Association also commented “ It is essential that we have a UK association that represents our views and ensures the ambitious plans of biogas infrastructure for UK PLC can be delivered in a robust and professional manner in the current economic climate”
Monsal, the UKs leading anaerobic digestion provider is one of the 10 founding members of the association.
“The aims of the new association will be to promote anaerobic digestion amongst the farming community and to local authorities,” Lord Redesdale, the chief executive of the ADBA said at the launch of the new association.
The ADBA believes that more than 1,000 anaerobic digestion plants will be built in the UK.
The association plans to have secured £1 billion in managed funds to finance anaerobic digestion in the UK by 2010 and Lord Redesdale said the cost of building the required number of plants will be £5 billion.
The industry in the coming years is expected to be employing more than 20,000 people.
“AD is the renewable technology that will do most to fight greenhouse gas emission from fossil fuels and providing good economic returns that are built on proven technology,” Lord Redesdale added.
ADBA Mission statement
The ADBA (Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association) is focused on the education, development and quality standards associated with all aspects of the anaerobic digestion of waste products and the resulting biogas as a renewable energy resource.
The Association recognises the importance of combining our experience in technology, building products, safety and the efficient use of resources whilst also benefiting from work carried out by others over the years.
Members from all aspects of the waste and renewable communities are welcome to share our aims for the development of anaerobic digestion and biogas.
The ADBA is to develop biogas as one of the UK’s major sources of energy within 10 years.
Looking to the future
ADBA, the trade association for the biogas industries, now represents all those involved in the design and build of the biogas infrastructure of Britain. Biogas will provide a significant percentage of Britain’s gas, easing the problem of energy security and also reducing the fossil fuel content of the gas and electricity grid.
ADBA plans to create the environment in which over 1000 plants are built in Britain. Five billion pounds will need to be raised from the private sector to fund construction. This is expected to create some 20,000 jobs.
The UK’s imminent dependence on imported gas means that gas prices will rise. The significant potential of biogas will lower the overall price of gas and will be a tool in fighting fuel poverty
Dorian Harrison Technical Director from Monsal who sits on the board on the new Association also commented “ It is essential that we have a UK association that represents our views and ensures the ambitious plans of biogas infrastructure for UK PLC can be delivered in a robust and professional manner in the current economic climate”
09 September 2009
The Advantages of Advanced Anaerobic Digestion with Thermal Hydrolysis Over Sludge Drying
In an energy dependent world, sludge should be an energy provider not an energy user. Keith Panter of Ebcor argues in favour of projects where energy cost/benefit rather than disposal becomes the major project driver. He also promotes the raised AD conversion rates achieved by what he and Cambi describe as "advanced digestion with thermal hydrolysis".
The following article has is based upon an article in Water and Wastewater Treatment August 2009 edition. In that article Keith Panter has highlighted the need for energy as the UK finally passes from the age of UK energy sufficiency into dependency upon supplies from overseas, and not only that but dependency on supplies from nations which have been politically unstable in quite recent times.
He highlights the welcome fact that following a recent review of energy policy, Dwr Cymru Welsh Water has decided to reduce its reliance on energy intensive thermal drying of raw sludge at three Wastewater Treatment Plants in South Wales in favour of anaerobic digestion (AD) and power generation at Cardiff and Afan.
The energy these AD plants will generate is high compared with farm waste type AD plants, and the aim is to generate 5MW of green power by March 2011 to grandfather the value of the Renewable Obligation Order Credits (ROCs). Apparently a technical and commercial review of pre-treatment technologies for AD has led to the selection of Cambi as the THP provider. The operator is Kelda who and they were consulted as part of the decision.
What I find remarkable is that he informs us that when complete, eight Cambi plants in total then operating in the UK and Ireland will be treating sludge from the equivalent of a 6M population. That’s almost a tenth of the United Kingdom population!
So, it reinforces me in the view that already in a short period of 5 years since I started to write about Anaerobic Digestion in my www.anaerobic-digestion.com web site, Anaerobic digestion has progressed from a novelty seen as largely just a sludge treatment and farm waste disposal process, to a main stream renewable energy producer.
Of course, it has been the rapid development of economic driving forces (drivers) which have moved the agenda forward at such a pace, and in recent years government incentives such as ROCs that have given the final push to propel AD into the limelight.
Back in March 1999, the Economist magazine (UK, London) predicted that energy prices would remain stable for the foreseeable future. How wrong could they have been?
Water treatment professionals got closer to reality, Keith says, when in a straw poll at the 1999 European Biosolids conference they were asked what they thought, and predicted a doubling of energy prices within ten years.
In reality the wholesale price of natural gas that was about £6/MWh at that time rose to over £20/MWh in the time period.
Ebcor has clearly for 10 years and longer, been looking in depth at the process cost model for sludge drying. He also evidently demonstrated at that same conference 10 years ago that investment in raw sludge drying would be misplaced if the price of energy even only doubled.
He explains that it takes about 1 MWh of energy to evaporate 1 tonne of water - so in general at that high an energy cost it is much cheaper to haul water in un-dried sludge cake than to evaporate it in a dryer.
The same model has apparently shown that the magnitude of the carbon footprint is more or less related to process cost as most sludge process costs are primarily energy related. Ebcor concluded at the time that advanced digestion (such as using the Cambi process with thermal hydrolysis) would give the best whole life cost and the most flexibility and would safeguard utilities from future energy price hikes.
The non financial justification of raw sludge drying is the flexibility offered by producing a potential fuel. Keith points out that this surely applies if markets do not exist for biosolids products but in reality these markets have remained stable and in some cases improved as biosolids quality has improved.
The UK safe sludge matrix was developed about the same time and has been a big help in securing biosolids' place in agriculture.
So, there it is. Yet another Anaerobic Digestion expert is in effect demonstrating very clearly that the day for AD has arrived. Are you using Anaerobic Digestion, or still drying WWTW sludge?
The following article has is based upon an article in Water and Wastewater Treatment August 2009 edition. In that article Keith Panter has highlighted the need for energy as the UK finally passes from the age of UK energy sufficiency into dependency upon supplies from overseas, and not only that but dependency on supplies from nations which have been politically unstable in quite recent times.
He highlights the welcome fact that following a recent review of energy policy, Dwr Cymru Welsh Water has decided to reduce its reliance on energy intensive thermal drying of raw sludge at three Wastewater Treatment Plants in South Wales in favour of anaerobic digestion (AD) and power generation at Cardiff and Afan.
The energy these AD plants will generate is high compared with farm waste type AD plants, and the aim is to generate 5MW of green power by March 2011 to grandfather the value of the Renewable Obligation Order Credits (ROCs). Apparently a technical and commercial review of pre-treatment technologies for AD has led to the selection of Cambi as the THP provider. The operator is Kelda who and they were consulted as part of the decision.
What I find remarkable is that he informs us that when complete, eight Cambi plants in total then operating in the UK and Ireland will be treating sludge from the equivalent of a 6M population. That’s almost a tenth of the United Kingdom population!
So, it reinforces me in the view that already in a short period of 5 years since I started to write about Anaerobic Digestion in my www.anaerobic-digestion.com web site, Anaerobic digestion has progressed from a novelty seen as largely just a sludge treatment and farm waste disposal process, to a main stream renewable energy producer.
Of course, it has been the rapid development of economic driving forces (drivers) which have moved the agenda forward at such a pace, and in recent years government incentives such as ROCs that have given the final push to propel AD into the limelight.
Back in March 1999, the Economist magazine (UK, London) predicted that energy prices would remain stable for the foreseeable future. How wrong could they have been?
Water treatment professionals got closer to reality, Keith says, when in a straw poll at the 1999 European Biosolids conference they were asked what they thought, and predicted a doubling of energy prices within ten years.
In reality the wholesale price of natural gas that was about £6/MWh at that time rose to over £20/MWh in the time period.
Ebcor has clearly for 10 years and longer, been looking in depth at the process cost model for sludge drying. He also evidently demonstrated at that same conference 10 years ago that investment in raw sludge drying would be misplaced if the price of energy even only doubled.
He explains that it takes about 1 MWh of energy to evaporate 1 tonne of water - so in general at that high an energy cost it is much cheaper to haul water in un-dried sludge cake than to evaporate it in a dryer.
The same model has apparently shown that the magnitude of the carbon footprint is more or less related to process cost as most sludge process costs are primarily energy related. Ebcor concluded at the time that advanced digestion (such as using the Cambi process with thermal hydrolysis) would give the best whole life cost and the most flexibility and would safeguard utilities from future energy price hikes.
The non financial justification of raw sludge drying is the flexibility offered by producing a potential fuel. Keith points out that this surely applies if markets do not exist for biosolids products but in reality these markets have remained stable and in some cases improved as biosolids quality has improved.
The UK safe sludge matrix was developed about the same time and has been a big help in securing biosolids' place in agriculture.
So, there it is. Yet another Anaerobic Digestion expert is in effect demonstrating very clearly that the day for AD has arrived. Are you using Anaerobic Digestion, or still drying WWTW sludge?
12 August 2009
Evidence of a Market Will Become End of "Waste" - EA Says
The Environment Agency (England and Wales) has now published a briefing note which makes it clear that it had changed its previous position that recovered material under the Quality Protocols scheme only ceases to be waste once it's been dispatched to the customer. It has decided that there shouldn't be any distinction made between processed material awaiting despatch and processed material which has already been despatched.
Vincent Brown, Head of Semple Fraser's expert legal team (website www.semplefraser.co.uk) has confirmed, as reported in the CIWM's journal for Waste and Resource Management Professionals published in July, that in law, there never was such a distinction.
The end of waste test needs only that you produce a marketable product that can be utilized in the same way as a normal ( ie, non-waste-derived ) product, with no worse environmental effects. Note the word "can" - not "is".
The legal test needs some evidence of a market to avoid sham production of claimed products that are simply stockpiled ( outside waste controls ) and never meant for consumption, but the method of physical delivery to the buyer wasn't needed.
And this approach is mirrored in Article six of the new Waste Framework Directive ( 2008 / 8 / EC ), which states that "certain mentioned waste shall cease to be waste when it has undergone a recovery operation and complies with express criteria to be developed" as to accord with the conditions, including that "a market or demand exists" for the substance or object.
The EA's new enlightened approach is to be welcomed and must come as very welcome news to many recyclers, as an indication of a more flexible and accommodating perspective to waste-derived products.
Vincent Brown, Head of Semple Fraser's expert legal team (website www.semplefraser.co.uk) has confirmed, as reported in the CIWM's journal for Waste and Resource Management Professionals published in July, that in law, there never was such a distinction.
The end of waste test needs only that you produce a marketable product that can be utilized in the same way as a normal ( ie, non-waste-derived ) product, with no worse environmental effects. Note the word "can" - not "is".
The legal test needs some evidence of a market to avoid sham production of claimed products that are simply stockpiled ( outside waste controls ) and never meant for consumption, but the method of physical delivery to the buyer wasn't needed.
And this approach is mirrored in Article six of the new Waste Framework Directive ( 2008 / 8 / EC ), which states that "certain mentioned waste shall cease to be waste when it has undergone a recovery operation and complies with express criteria to be developed" as to accord with the conditions, including that "a market or demand exists" for the substance or object.
The EA's new enlightened approach is to be welcomed and must come as very welcome news to many recyclers, as an indication of a more flexible and accommodating perspective to waste-derived products.
09 August 2009
Draft Implementation Plan Published by Anaerobic Digestion Task Group
UK Government Department Defra's Anaerobic Digestion Task Group has published a draft Implementation Plan outlining the steps it believes government and industry stakeholders need to do take to achieve a major increase in uptake of the technology.
The plan identifies areas including infrastructure, technology and regulation as priorities for action. It contains 46 recommendations, including:
• Developing an economic framework to encourage use of digestate as soil conditioner and fertiliser and biogas as a fuel
• Developing new feed-in tariffs for small scale renewable energy generation and renewable heat incentives
• Finalising the standard and Quality Protocol for digestate
• Continuing to improve knowledge of anaerobic digestion (AD) technology and prioritising research and development
• Increasing awareness and understanding of AD among developers, investors, customers and those involved in planning.
The aim of the recommendations in the report is to deliver the ambitions for anaerobic digestion set out in the Defra report 'Anaerobic Digestion - Shared Goals' published earlier this year.
Waste and recycling minister Dan Norris welcomed the publication said the government planned to respond to the recommendations in the document later this year.
And, speaking to letsrecycle.com about the Plan, the Task Group chair Steve Lee of CIWM explained that the body was now seeking input from AD stakeholders, although he added that this would not be a formal consultation process.
He also wants to see some commitment from the sector towards the proposals. He said: "It is a draft implementation plan and we want to get it out into the real world and get a range of people to look at it and comment on it."
The task group is open to receiving feedback on the document until 9 September and a final plan is due for publication in the autumn.
Mr Lee added: "Some actions will be easy to deliver and some will take years but if it was a quick win plan it would not be worth very much. It will help further the take-up of anaerobic digestion."
The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) has set up a forum to allow for easy communication between stakeholders about the Plan and provide a platform for feedback to the task group.
Dr Richard Swannell, director of retail & organics at WRAP added: "The Draft Implementation Plan has made some key recommendations which will stimulate the rapid development of the Anaerobic Digestion industry in the UK. Source: Association for Organics Recycling.
The plan identifies areas including infrastructure, technology and regulation as priorities for action. It contains 46 recommendations, including:
• Developing an economic framework to encourage use of digestate as soil conditioner and fertiliser and biogas as a fuel
• Developing new feed-in tariffs for small scale renewable energy generation and renewable heat incentives
• Finalising the standard and Quality Protocol for digestate
• Continuing to improve knowledge of anaerobic digestion (AD) technology and prioritising research and development
• Increasing awareness and understanding of AD among developers, investors, customers and those involved in planning.
The aim of the recommendations in the report is to deliver the ambitions for anaerobic digestion set out in the Defra report 'Anaerobic Digestion - Shared Goals' published earlier this year.
Waste and recycling minister Dan Norris welcomed the publication said the government planned to respond to the recommendations in the document later this year.
And, speaking to letsrecycle.com about the Plan, the Task Group chair Steve Lee of CIWM explained that the body was now seeking input from AD stakeholders, although he added that this would not be a formal consultation process.
He also wants to see some commitment from the sector towards the proposals. He said: "It is a draft implementation plan and we want to get it out into the real world and get a range of people to look at it and comment on it."
The task group is open to receiving feedback on the document until 9 September and a final plan is due for publication in the autumn.
Mr Lee added: "Some actions will be easy to deliver and some will take years but if it was a quick win plan it would not be worth very much. It will help further the take-up of anaerobic digestion."
The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) has set up a forum to allow for easy communication between stakeholders about the Plan and provide a platform for feedback to the task group.
Dr Richard Swannell, director of retail & organics at WRAP added: "The Draft Implementation Plan has made some key recommendations which will stimulate the rapid development of the Anaerobic Digestion industry in the UK. Source: Association for Organics Recycling.
12 July 2009
Waste Management Inc. Proposes World's Largest Landfill Gas To Fuel Plant
As start-up on the world's largest plant to convert landfill gas into clean vehicle fuel nears completion, joint venture partners Linde North America and Waste Management have begun to share details of the project. The companies are installing systems at WM's Altamont Landfill near Livermore, CA that will purify and liquefy landfill gas, a renewable source of biomethane fuel. When the $15.5 million plant begins operating later this year, it is designed to produce up to 13,000 gallons a day of liquefied natural gas (LNG) that could fuel hundreds of waste collection vehicles.
Bryan Luftglass, Manager of Linde North America's Energy Segment said, "Biomethane is a truly renewable and readily available green source of high quality fuel.
Although it is still an emerging commodity, its economic and environmental value is rapidly being recognized." Kent Stoddard, Vice President of Public Affairs for Waste Management's West Group also commented saying, "Waste Management's partnership with Linde will allow us to tap into a valuable source of clean energy while greatly reducing our dependence on fossil fuels.
Natural gas is already the cleanest burning fuel available for our collection trucks and the opportunity to use recovered landfill gas offers enormous environmental benefits to the communities we serve."
SOURCE: Waste Management, Inc.
Bryan Luftglass, Manager of Linde North America's Energy Segment said, "Biomethane is a truly renewable and readily available green source of high quality fuel.
Although it is still an emerging commodity, its economic and environmental value is rapidly being recognized." Kent Stoddard, Vice President of Public Affairs for Waste Management's West Group also commented saying, "Waste Management's partnership with Linde will allow us to tap into a valuable source of clean energy while greatly reducing our dependence on fossil fuels.
Natural gas is already the cleanest burning fuel available for our collection trucks and the opportunity to use recovered landfill gas offers enormous environmental benefits to the communities we serve."
SOURCE: Waste Management, Inc.
27 June 2009
PVC-based Skin Gasholders and Advantages of CDM Managed In House
The following article is based on an extract from Wet News (November 2008 edition) the original article is about work done by water and highways/earthworks Contractor May Gurney to refurbish and improve the current Severn Trent Coalport, anaerobic digester, which digests sewage sludge.
I was very interested in the information about the biogas gas holder, which they also call a gas-bag due to its flexible construction. We are told that, the installation of a new, larger gas bag will add to efficiency of the site.
The new spherical gas holders are the most immediate visible sign of the state of the art solutions that have been implemented at the Severn Trent sites. These are golfing ball white spheres which are created from 2 polyester and PVC-based skins, the outer being inflated by air pressure and holds up the structure. The inner skin is postponed inside he outer skin and contains the biogas.
The wonderful thing about these new biogas holders is that they are made from materials which are immune to the corrosive nature of the unscrubbed biogas, which with its hydrogen sulphide content produces feeble sulphuric acid on contact with the water in the saturated gas. This would simply severely damage an unprotected steel container.
The writer informs us that there are apparent savings from a gas holder bag compared against a traditional rigid gas holder. A traditional steel gas holder also needs a significant civil structure which is full of water and contains what amounts to a steel bell, while a gas bag simply sits on a concrete base. The bag also needs less upkeep and isn't subject to freezing in winter. This produces a far smaller carbon footprint and a reduction in capital and operational spend.
The new gas holders are also in truth crucial pieces of process plant, instead of the mere storage vessels their name advocates. They maintain a consistent system pressure needed for the proper operation of engines, boilers and waste gas flare stacks. They also have level instruments that measure the height and volume of the inner gas bag to provide signals for process control, so they have to be simple, trustworthy and tough.
In-house Design Process and Safety
We are also told that further efficiencies and economies have been driven into the Severn Trent project thanks to the proven fact that May Gurney handled the complete design process in-house, from taking the outline design produced by Severn Trent's framework designer, thru to completion. While many main contractors might outsource the design part of such projects to an external consultant, May Gurney has its own expert team, so both reducing cost - making economies of scale and avoiding passing on fee-on-fee margins to the customer - and also reducing risk thanks to better control of safety in design risk assessments. Derek Shepherd is May Gurney's design chief, who is in charge of design coordination.
He explains the benefits of the full service approach : "By taking more control for Design Management upon themselves, and not passing it to a third party, they are hey believe particularly assured of coverage in all sides of the projects.
There's less risk, Derek points out, and by not having to confirm someone else's design we also save time without doubling up effort." Better still, the in-house design team have made a contribution to better environmental performance.
Derek Shepherd believes that, by having an independent and unbiased designer, they managed to identify all products, materials and providers based on performance and an overall design approach to the system. This was instead of it being based on any existing commercial relations.
Source: Wet News
25 May 2009
Swedish Co. Helps S Korea Convert Food Waste Into Biogas
By KELLY OLSEN
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The South Korean city of Ulsan lets water generated from processing food waste run off into the ocean, which can generate methane gas harmful to the environment.
Now, with the help of a Swedish company, it is going to start converting that waste water into biogas, a type of clean fuel that can be used as power to heat buildings and even power vehicles.
South Korea is looking for ways to increase the use of biogas and other clean energy alternatives amid a push by the government of President Lee Myung-bak to embark on a new development model that emphasizes so-called green growth.
Ulsan, a brawny industrial center of about 1 million people on the country's southeastern coast, saw biogas as an attractive way to deal with a burgeoning waste problem as well as coming tighter government regulations.
"Ulsan is running out of waste disposal sites to cover all the garbage that comes out from the city," municipal official Park In-muk said Thursday. "When garbage is processed into compost, it creates waste water," he said, which the city has been letting it flow into the ocean.
The dumping of waste water generated by the processing of leftover food into the sea, however, will be banned from 2013, according to the Ministry of Land, Transport, and Maritime affairs.
The Ministry of Environment, meanwhile, has increased its budget this year for waste energy, including biogas plants, by five times to 178 billion won ($143 million), according to ministry official Choi Byung-chul.
The government's impending ban on the practice spurred Ulsan, home to big corporations Hyundai Motor Corp. and Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., helped push Ulsan to look for alternatives. It found a partner in Scandinavian Biogas Fuels AB.
The company is based in Sweden, which has been a pioneer in biogas development.
Scandinavian Biogas is investing about 10 million euros to upgrade a wastewater treatment plant in Ulsan and will soon start accepting food and other waste for processing into biogas, said Scandinavian Biogas President and CEO Thomas Davidsson.
"Producing biogas is a very effective way of taking care of the waste" as it can be used for heat, electricity and vehicle fuel, Davidsson said in an interview Wednesday. He was in Seoul to participate in the Seoul Climate Change Expo held in conjunction with the third C40 Large Cities Climate Summit.
Turning food waste into biogas can also contribute to efforts to stop global warming.
Read the rest of this article at The Associated Press.
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The South Korean city of Ulsan lets water generated from processing food waste run off into the ocean, which can generate methane gas harmful to the environment.
Now, with the help of a Swedish company, it is going to start converting that waste water into biogas, a type of clean fuel that can be used as power to heat buildings and even power vehicles.
South Korea is looking for ways to increase the use of biogas and other clean energy alternatives amid a push by the government of President Lee Myung-bak to embark on a new development model that emphasizes so-called green growth.
Ulsan, a brawny industrial center of about 1 million people on the country's southeastern coast, saw biogas as an attractive way to deal with a burgeoning waste problem as well as coming tighter government regulations.
"Ulsan is running out of waste disposal sites to cover all the garbage that comes out from the city," municipal official Park In-muk said Thursday. "When garbage is processed into compost, it creates waste water," he said, which the city has been letting it flow into the ocean.
The dumping of waste water generated by the processing of leftover food into the sea, however, will be banned from 2013, according to the Ministry of Land, Transport, and Maritime affairs.
The Ministry of Environment, meanwhile, has increased its budget this year for waste energy, including biogas plants, by five times to 178 billion won ($143 million), according to ministry official Choi Byung-chul.
The government's impending ban on the practice spurred Ulsan, home to big corporations Hyundai Motor Corp. and Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., helped push Ulsan to look for alternatives. It found a partner in Scandinavian Biogas Fuels AB.
The company is based in Sweden, which has been a pioneer in biogas development.
Scandinavian Biogas is investing about 10 million euros to upgrade a wastewater treatment plant in Ulsan and will soon start accepting food and other waste for processing into biogas, said Scandinavian Biogas President and CEO Thomas Davidsson.
"Producing biogas is a very effective way of taking care of the waste" as it can be used for heat, electricity and vehicle fuel, Davidsson said in an interview Wednesday. He was in Seoul to participate in the Seoul Climate Change Expo held in conjunction with the third C40 Large Cities Climate Summit.
Turning food waste into biogas can also contribute to efforts to stop global warming.
Read the rest of this article at The Associated Press.
18 May 2009
Anaerobic Digestion May Be Cheaper Than In-vessel Composting
Processing food waste using anaerobic digestion technology is not necessarily as expensive in relative terms as some councils may think, consultancy Eunomia has claimed.Speaking at the AD In the City event held in the UK by BiogenGreenfinch last month, senior consultant, Dr Adrian Gibbs, said that using AD to process food waste collected separately could work out cheaper than processing commingled food and green waste together in an in vessel composting plant.
Dr Gibbs explained that a report by Eunomia had found that sending food waste to AD and green waste to windrow composting cost UK councils £9.50 in gate fees per household per year, whereas sending commingled green and food waste to IVC cost £10.80 per household. He also said that just collecting food waste alone and sending it to AD cost £5.50 per household over the same period.
Dr Gibbs admitted that average gate fees for AD facilities - around £55 per tonne - were higher than IVC - which, he quoted as £45 per tonne, but said that "overall AD is cheaper". He also claimed that separate food waste collections also worked out cheaper than mixed collections and said that the number of local authorities which were implementing separate collections had risen from 11 in 2007 to 54 in 2008.
He told the London borough council officers who attended the event, which was set up to explore ways to introduce more AD capacity in London, that - "AD is better than IVC, it's the way to go and it is the one I would watch."
Anaerobic digestion treats food waste in an oxygen-free environment and produces biogas - which can be converted into energy - and a nutrient rich digestate which can be used on farmland. It also has the potential to provide combined heat and power (CHP).
IVC treats green and/or food waste and sometimes card in an enclosed but oxygenated and aerated environment and produces compost. It does not generate energy.
A number of strengths and weaknesses were highlighted for both separate and mixed collection. The plus side to mixed collections included - only needing to use one vehicle, only one bin required and quick and cheap collections.
However, Dr Gibbs explained that the seasons significantly affected what was collected, with garden waste levels dropping significantly in the winter, meaning that feedstock was inconsistent. He also said that the waste had to be processed in an enclosed environment due to Animal By-Product Regulations and this ups the cost of green waste.
Dr Gibbs also pointed out that green waste and food wastes required different collection frequencies. In addition, not all homes have gardens and collecting green and food waste together prevented councils charging for green waste collection. He claimed that separate AD collection reduced net costs for councils and allowed local authorities to charge for garden waste. He added that there is a large quantity of food waste which could potentially be picked up.
Dr Gibbs said AD had a number of strengths, including -
* Internationally proven technology
* AD has strong government support in the form of ROCs, a Task Group and feed-in tariffs
* It is a carbon positive technology
* Valuable outputs - biogas and digestate - and
* Leaves green waste to go through the cheaper windrow process.
He said AD's only weakness was the lack of facilities in the UK, adding - "AD wins hands-down for organic waste."
15 May 2009
Biogas Enters Racing with Biomethane Powered Sciroccos
Only last weekend a guy told me that he thought biogas was a "cranky" subject! Well, I think not, and what could be better than this announcement to show such people just how wrong they are!
Biogas-Powered VW Sciroccos Debut at STCC
Source: NGV Global
VW Scirocco has successful STCC debut
Sweden
E.ON, a German producer of biogas and provider of biogas refuelling equipment, has partnered with Volkswagen Motorsport to enter two 100% biomethane powered Sciroccos in the Swedish Touring Car Championship (STCC) for 2009.
The team celebrated a successful race debut for its season-opening event, held at Mantorp racetrack in Mjölby, on May 2nd, in what is reputedly the toughest racing event for standard cars in Sweden. In the first of the two races the best Scirocco was in the 11th position, in the second race in the 9th position -- in both races 16 seconds behind the winner after a 14 lap race at the 3.1 km long circuit.
With further work on the new VW cars the biogas team is confident of performance improvements throughout the nine event season, held across venues in Sweden with one race in Norway. "The purpose of our effort is to demonstrate the potential of biogas - the Swedish climate-smart fuel, " says HÃ¥kan Buskhe, CEO of E.ON, adding they want to show that biogas is like any other fuel -- only better.
The (almost) 280 hp, 4-cylinder, 1998 cc Scirocco reaches 100 km/h in 4.5 seconds and has a top speed of 240 km/h, with output of 310 Nm. The two vehicles were built by Volkswagen Motorsport in Hanover.
Driver Fredrik Ekblom, who has completed nine STCC seasons (three championships, three silver and a bronze), and Patrik Olsson, who has raced in the Volkswagen Polo Cup, are enthusiastic about their vehicles. Ekblom said, "For me, this is a significant challenge. After nine seasons, to start with a whole new racing concept with clean, green fuel feels new, fresh and incredibly exciting."
Click on the heading for more inforamtion.
Biogas-Powered VW Sciroccos Debut at STCC
Source: NGV Global
VW Scirocco has successful STCC debut
Sweden
E.ON, a German producer of biogas and provider of biogas refuelling equipment, has partnered with Volkswagen Motorsport to enter two 100% biomethane powered Sciroccos in the Swedish Touring Car Championship (STCC) for 2009.
The team celebrated a successful race debut for its season-opening event, held at Mantorp racetrack in Mjölby, on May 2nd, in what is reputedly the toughest racing event for standard cars in Sweden. In the first of the two races the best Scirocco was in the 11th position, in the second race in the 9th position -- in both races 16 seconds behind the winner after a 14 lap race at the 3.1 km long circuit.
With further work on the new VW cars the biogas team is confident of performance improvements throughout the nine event season, held across venues in Sweden with one race in Norway. "The purpose of our effort is to demonstrate the potential of biogas - the Swedish climate-smart fuel, " says HÃ¥kan Buskhe, CEO of E.ON, adding they want to show that biogas is like any other fuel -- only better.
The (almost) 280 hp, 4-cylinder, 1998 cc Scirocco reaches 100 km/h in 4.5 seconds and has a top speed of 240 km/h, with output of 310 Nm. The two vehicles were built by Volkswagen Motorsport in Hanover.
Driver Fredrik Ekblom, who has completed nine STCC seasons (three championships, three silver and a bronze), and Patrik Olsson, who has raced in the Volkswagen Polo Cup, are enthusiastic about their vehicles. Ekblom said, "For me, this is a significant challenge. After nine seasons, to start with a whole new racing concept with clean, green fuel feels new, fresh and incredibly exciting."
Click on the heading for more inforamtion.
Second International Conference on Energy and Sustainability
23-25 June 2009
Energy and Sustainability 2009
Bologna, Italy
Second International Conference on Energy and Sustainability
Conference Topics include:
Energy resources management, Energy and the environment, Energy markets and policy, Efficiency, Computer modelling, Nuclear fuels, Energy and life cycle analysis, Pollution control, Climate change, Renewable energy technologies, Exergy studies, Hydrocarbons, Transportation, Energy production and distribution
Click on the heading to this post for more inforamtion
Energy and Sustainability 2009
Bologna, Italy
Second International Conference on Energy and Sustainability
Conference Topics include:
Energy resources management, Energy and the environment, Energy markets and policy, Efficiency, Computer modelling, Nuclear fuels, Energy and life cycle analysis, Pollution control, Climate change, Renewable energy technologies, Exergy studies, Hydrocarbons, Transportation, Energy production and distribution
Click on the heading to this post for more inforamtion
12 April 2009
Biogasmax Conference on Biomethane 7-9 September 2009
Here is a great conference to attend for those interested in renewable vehicle fuel from biogas. The whole subject of vehicle fuels and air pollution is going to become a really hot subject in my view, after the UK budget in the next few weeks, when we are told to expect moves on reducing emissions and advancing the renewable energy agenda. It is to be hoped it won't just be an elector grabbing take on zippy electric cars...
Biogasmax project has for three years implemented cross-analysis, research and innovation developments on biomethane as a vehicle fuel. This conference will give a great focus on the outcomes brought from this major European Commission funded initiative.
Biomethane offers a unique opportunity to integrate waste management solutions with the production and use of a clean burning, low carbon transport fuel. This event will bring together expertise on the production, upgrading and distribution of biomethane, management of transport fleets and environmental assessment to make a strong case for the production of biomethane from organic waste, and its use in transport applications.
Presentations will include best practice from Sweden, France, Switzerland, Italy and beyond, insights on the gas vehicle market, on the on-coming European Commission policies and vision, expertise in the production, upgrading and distribution of biomethane, and details of assistance available for those considering biomethane projects.
The conference also offers the opportunity to participate in study visits to see projects first hand, and to discuss with those having hands-on experience. Above all, the event will represent an excellent opportunity to meet and network with a wide range of stakeholders involved in the production and use of biomethane, both informally and also through our expert panel sessions.
Book the dates!and welcome to Sweden at the Biogasmax Conference on Biomethane 7-9 September 2009.
18 March 2009
Plan for West Yorkshire £45m Waste-to-Biofuel Plant
Plans to develop a £45 million waste-to-ethanol facility in West Yorkshire have been unveiled by Leeds-based waste management company, Mytum and Selby.
The company has teamed up biomass-to-ethanol technology provider AqueGen to develop the Maltings Organic Treatment Plant at South Milford, with the eventual aim of converting 400,000 tonnes of waste as biomass into at least 100 million litres of the biofuel ethanol a year.
Operating through a subsidiary, The Maltings Organics Treatment Company, which it has set up in a joint venture with AqueGen, Mytum & Selby said that it hopes to have the plant up-and-running by 2011.
The company was granted a certificate of lawful use to allow it to treat waste on the site of a former brewery in March 2008 and says that, when built, the biomass-to-ethanol plant would be the first of its kind in the UK.
Mr Carrie said: "Our planning permission on site makes the plant the only one of its kind in the UK and enables us to handle huge quantities of food waste, ABP and liquids.
"Initially this will provide compost for agricultural and horticultural use and on completion the plant will convert the bulk of the biomass to the biofuel ethanol.
Composting
Speaking to letsrecycle.com on March 12, Mr Carrie explained that Mytum & Selby has just invested £500,000 in the site to allow it to develop a 25,000 tonne-a-year capacity in-vessel composting (IVC) plant , which it hoped to have operational by October 2009.
Phase two of The Maltings project, which the company hopes to complete by the end of 2010, would see the IVC facility's capacity increased to 75,000 tonnes-a-year, involving a total investment of around £1 million from the parent company. More.
The company has teamed up biomass-to-ethanol technology provider AqueGen to develop the Maltings Organic Treatment Plant at South Milford, with the eventual aim of converting 400,000 tonnes of waste as biomass into at least 100 million litres of the biofuel ethanol a year.
Operating through a subsidiary, The Maltings Organics Treatment Company, which it has set up in a joint venture with AqueGen, Mytum & Selby said that it hopes to have the plant up-and-running by 2011.
The company was granted a certificate of lawful use to allow it to treat waste on the site of a former brewery in March 2008 and says that, when built, the biomass-to-ethanol plant would be the first of its kind in the UK.
Mr Carrie said: "Our planning permission on site makes the plant the only one of its kind in the UK and enables us to handle huge quantities of food waste, ABP and liquids.
"Initially this will provide compost for agricultural and horticultural use and on completion the plant will convert the bulk of the biomass to the biofuel ethanol.
"This new initiative means we will be the first biomass to ethanol plant in the UK utilising biomass recovered from waste sources. The facility will meet increasing demand for environmentally-friendly fuel across the country,"he added.
Composting
Speaking to letsrecycle.com on March 12, Mr Carrie explained that Mytum & Selby has just invested £500,000 in the site to allow it to develop a 25,000 tonne-a-year capacity in-vessel composting (IVC) plant , which it hoped to have operational by October 2009.
Phase two of The Maltings project, which the company hopes to complete by the end of 2010, would see the IVC facility's capacity increased to 75,000 tonnes-a-year, involving a total investment of around £1 million from the parent company. More.
04 March 2009
National Grid Report Pushes for Anaerobic Digestion and Gasification for Biomethane into UK Gas Grid
National Grid presents biogas report to UK government
(First posted 02/02/2009)
Half Britain's homes could be heated by renewable gas, says National Grid in a report it has presented to the UK Government.
The report looks at how all the biodegradable waste streams such as sewage, food and wood could be turned into biogas and injected into the gas distribution system.
Biogas is produced by two main processes. Anaerobic digestion which turns wet waste such as sewage and animal manure into biomethane and gasification which is better suited to drier wastes and energy crops. Biomethane is already being produced and injected into the gas grids in Europe.
It is estimated that biogas would be a similar price to other renewable energy sources. However because the country already has an extensive gas grid, there would be little need for disruptive infrastructure development or any major inconvenience to consumers in their homes or streets.
The report concludes that there are no insurmountable technical difficulties to delivering biogas. The main hurdle will be about getting the right commercial incentives in place so waste can be turned into biomethane for gas grid injection rather than electricity. This needs to be allied with a comprehensive waste management policy.
A copy of the report can be found in the Publications section of the National Grid web site.
Steve - This is one BIG and welcome turnaround! for the UK gas suppliers to, for the first time, welcome biomethane from Anaerobic Digestion Plants into the natural gas distribution system
(First posted 02/02/2009)
Half Britain's homes could be heated by renewable gas, says National Grid in a report it has presented to the UK Government.
The report looks at how all the biodegradable waste streams such as sewage, food and wood could be turned into biogas and injected into the gas distribution system.
Biogas is produced by two main processes. Anaerobic digestion which turns wet waste such as sewage and animal manure into biomethane and gasification which is better suited to drier wastes and energy crops. Biomethane is already being produced and injected into the gas grids in Europe.
It is estimated that biogas would be a similar price to other renewable energy sources. However because the country already has an extensive gas grid, there would be little need for disruptive infrastructure development or any major inconvenience to consumers in their homes or streets.
The report concludes that there are no insurmountable technical difficulties to delivering biogas. The main hurdle will be about getting the right commercial incentives in place so waste can be turned into biomethane for gas grid injection rather than electricity. This needs to be allied with a comprehensive waste management policy.
A copy of the report can be found in the Publications section of the National Grid web site.
Steve - This is one BIG and welcome turnaround! for the UK gas suppliers to, for the first time, welcome biomethane from Anaerobic Digestion Plants into the natural gas distribution system
27 February 2009
AD Digestate Protocol Should Encourage Sales of Digestate
This protocol should assist the producers of AD Digestate massively to sell their digestate, if all goes well (Steve Last - www.anaerobic-digestion.com).
02-01-2009
Anaerobic digestion technology is expected to become more attractive to investors following the publication of a long-awaited Quality Protocol aimed at cutting red tape governing solid residues from the process, known as digestate.
The revised Quality Protocol is available now on the Environment Agency website
The revised Quality Protocol is available now on the Environment Agency website
WRAP, Defra and the Environment Agency have published a document which, subject to approval from the European Commission, will enable digestate which meets set criteria to be classified as a product rather than a waste. Such a move would mean the material would no longer be subject to waste management controls.
Anaerobic digestion is the process through which biodegradable waste is broken down by micro-organisms in the absence of oxygen. This process produces biogas, which can be used to generate energy, waste water and digestate.
The protocol is particularly significant because, despite government support for anaerobic digestion technology and its carbon benefits, there has been limited uptake of the technology in the UK to date - with marketing digestate one of the main sticking points.
Nick Bethel, policy advisor at the Environment Agency, told letsrecycle.com that
the protocol had been designed to "bring value into the resource" and one of its purposes was to create a "climate for investment". Mr Bethel added the EA was "expecting to see further investment and more AD facilities being built" thanks to the re-classification of digestate from a waste to a product.
Requirements
The Quality Protocol, which has been revised since an original consultation in April (see letsrecycle.com story) lays out a number of requirements for AD operators who want to produce "quality digestate" from biodegradable waste.
Digestate must be produced using source-segregated materials listed in the Protocol, such as municipal food waste which has been collected separately and specified food and animal wastes.
Significantly, the Protocol designates end market for the digestate. Those markets are:
• Agriculture
• Forestry
• Soil and field grown horticulture
• Land restoration
• Soil manufacture and blending operations
• Land reclamation
In all cases the digestate must be used in a way that does not "pose a risk to the environment" and does "not compromise the future sustainable use of the soil to which they are applied".
Waste operators must also keep strict records showing showing that digestate meets the approved standards and the Quality Protocol. AD operators must also obtain certification from an approved body such as the Association for Organics Recycling.
Before publication as a final document in England and Wales, the draft Quality Protocol must be notified before the European Commission's Technical Standards committee, which may take up to six months.
During this period, the Environment Agency will continue to regulate the production and use of quality outputs from anaerobic digestion of source-segregated biodegradable waste in accordance with the interim regulatory position statement available on the Environment Agency website.
A spokesman for Defra commented: "The Government recognises the potential of food waste to generate energy in an environmentally friendly way. For example, we are investing £10 million over the next three years into new anaerobic digestion demonstration plants to encourage a number of industries including energy providers to take up this important new technology."
19 February 2009
German Anaerobic Digestion Technology Supplier Enters UK and Irish Markets
UTS Biogastechnik is now also in UK & Ireland
Foundation of UTS Biogas Ltd.
The UTS Biogastechnik Group of companies were extended into the United Kingdom and Ireland by a new subsidiary on December 1, 2008.
UTS Biogas Ltd., with Rob Heap as General Manager, is located in North Yorkshire, near Scarborough and will provide full support to biogas markets in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Rob Heap has many years of experience in the agricultural and allied industries.
The CEO of the parent company, Dr. Andrew Benedek, said:
"It is now the right time to enter this very interesting and rapidly expanding market. Government plans to support renewable energies are well developed and already the first bills have been accepted by Parliament. It is our belief that this act will certainly help with climate change and, most importantly, will also significantly help local environments by turning waste into energy."
From the German perspective they view the biogas sector in the UK as hardly developed – compared with other European markets.
First developments show that mostly small – medium output plants are appealing to potential customers.
UTS has over sixteen years experience in building reliable plants in this range and they believe that they have a lot to offer the UK market as they can also support the developing UK AD market as the plants in the larger megawatt ranges become important.
With the full support of the parent company situated in Germany, Rob Heap and the UTS team want to offer their future customers a total-solutions concept including feasibility, planning, design & build, operating, training and complete after-sales support following hand-over of the plant.
Rob’s view is that:
“With the vast experience, flexible approach and advanced technical standards of UTS-products, we can deliver more reliable plants and comprehensive supporting services to the UK & Irish markets than those that have been available before."
Further information can be obtained at their website: www.uts-biogas.com
03 February 2009
Is Anaerobic Digestion a Good Way to Treat Landfill Leachate?
Every now and again the question of whether landfill leachate can be effectively treated by Anaerobic Digestion is raised.
My reply is yes, and in fact, it has already happened in the landfill before you usually see most leachate. After an initial aerobic (acetogenic) stage, modern landfills in effect become anaerobic digesters themselves. Once this has occurred the leachate produced has already been subjected to a form of anaerobic digestion, so there is little additional treatment which an AD Plant can provide to these mature leachates once leachate is removed from the landfill.
In a modern Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) landfill. as it is filled, each cell or area within it, will within 6 months to one year, or, at the most eighteen months, not only become airless, but methanogenic (methane producing). Once this happens, the decomposition process taking place in the landfill is broadly similar to, but slower than, that which occurs in an anaerobic digester.
So, modern lined and well regulated landfills these days do, almost without exception, produce a mature methanogenic leachate.
As a result the use of Anaerobic Digestion to treat landfill leachate is not normally a good choice and the use of the Anaerobic Digestion process to treat landfill leachate is not very effective. This can be readily deduced just by thinking about the processes which leachate undergoes within a landfill. The big problem with using AD on a mature leachate would be the lack of significant reduction of ammoniacal nitrogen in the discharge, and ammoniacal nitrogen is one of the most important contaminants to remove, for reduced toxity to water life.
However, the opposite does work. Now think of using aerobic reactors to treat Anaerobic Digestion concentrates, if these concentrates cannot for any reason be disposed as a fertiliser product and thus have to be treated as a waste material.
So, leachate treatment plant aerobic biological reactors can be used very effectively to treat AD liquid digestate, if that "product" ends up proving to be unsaleable locally. Indeed, on site aerobic digestate treatment might be essential in these circumstances if no sewage treatment works was available to accept tanker loads of liquid from an AD Plant.
My reply is yes, and in fact, it has already happened in the landfill before you usually see most leachate. After an initial aerobic (acetogenic) stage, modern landfills in effect become anaerobic digesters themselves. Once this has occurred the leachate produced has already been subjected to a form of anaerobic digestion, so there is little additional treatment which an AD Plant can provide to these mature leachates once leachate is removed from the landfill.
In a modern Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) landfill. as it is filled, each cell or area within it, will within 6 months to one year, or, at the most eighteen months, not only become airless, but methanogenic (methane producing). Once this happens, the decomposition process taking place in the landfill is broadly similar to, but slower than, that which occurs in an anaerobic digester.
So, modern lined and well regulated landfills these days do, almost without exception, produce a mature methanogenic leachate.
As a result the use of Anaerobic Digestion to treat landfill leachate is not normally a good choice and the use of the Anaerobic Digestion process to treat landfill leachate is not very effective. This can be readily deduced just by thinking about the processes which leachate undergoes within a landfill. The big problem with using AD on a mature leachate would be the lack of significant reduction of ammoniacal nitrogen in the discharge, and ammoniacal nitrogen is one of the most important contaminants to remove, for reduced toxity to water life.
However, the opposite does work. Now think of using aerobic reactors to treat Anaerobic Digestion concentrates, if these concentrates cannot for any reason be disposed as a fertiliser product and thus have to be treated as a waste material.
So, leachate treatment plant aerobic biological reactors can be used very effectively to treat AD liquid digestate, if that "product" ends up proving to be unsaleable locally. Indeed, on site aerobic digestate treatment might be essential in these circumstances if no sewage treatment works was available to accept tanker loads of liquid from an AD Plant.
14 January 2009
Cumbernauld (Scotland) to Get Anaerobic Digestion Plant in Scottish Water and Monsal Announcement
Scottish Water to build biogas plant in Cumbernauld
Scottish Water's plans to build an anaerobic digestion facility at Cumbernauld which will generate electricity and heat have made a major step forward with the signing of agreements to design and build the 30,000 tonne-a-year capacity plant.
The utilities company has secured the services of Nottinghamshire-based AD specialists Monsal and HBS Construction of Glasgow to design and build the Deerdykes facility, which will be built on the same site as its existing 24,000 tonne-a-year capacity in-vessel composting plant.
Expected to be fully operational by April 2010, the plant will generate 1MW of electricity - to be used on site, by neighbouring industrial estates and, potentially, sold back to the National Grid.
It will also produce 1.1MW of heat which can be used in district heating schemes for local homes and businesses.
Planning permission for the site, which will be run by the commercial arm of Scottish Water Waste Services, Horizons, has already been awarded and the company is in the process of securing operating permits.
Aidan Cumisky, managing director of Monsal, said: "This will be a flagship project for Scotland where Scottish Water Waste Services has taken the initiative to demonstrate the viability of biowaste anaerobic digestion on a large scale.
"This solution can be applied across Scotland to make a significant impact on waste recycling and renewable energy generation targets using the latest Monsal technology."
The development was welcomed by Mike Russell, environment minister for the Scottish Government, who said: "The extension to Deerdykes is precisely the kind of forward-thinking that we want local authorities to undertake as we push to minimise the waste generated in Scotland."
The plans were also well-received by Duncan McLaren, chief executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland who said: "This is an example of a big company taking sound initiative to help address the twin problems of climate change and excessive organic waste being sent to landfill."
A spokesman for Scottish Water explained the plant would at first take in food waste collected by local councils and it is hoped that the food industry will also use the facility to process its waste.
He said that "initial waste streams to provide raw materials have already been secured" and added that Scottish Water is currently trying attract the commercial sector to the operation.
More at New Energy Focus...
Scottish Water's plans to build an anaerobic digestion facility at Cumbernauld which will generate electricity and heat have made a major step forward with the signing of agreements to design and build the 30,000 tonne-a-year capacity plant.
The utilities company has secured the services of Nottinghamshire-based AD specialists Monsal and HBS Construction of Glasgow to design and build the Deerdykes facility, which will be built on the same site as its existing 24,000 tonne-a-year capacity in-vessel composting plant.
Expected to be fully operational by April 2010, the plant will generate 1MW of electricity - to be used on site, by neighbouring industrial estates and, potentially, sold back to the National Grid.
It will also produce 1.1MW of heat which can be used in district heating schemes for local homes and businesses.
Planning permission for the site, which will be run by the commercial arm of Scottish Water Waste Services, Horizons, has already been awarded and the company is in the process of securing operating permits.
Aidan Cumisky, managing director of Monsal, said: "This will be a flagship project for Scotland where Scottish Water Waste Services has taken the initiative to demonstrate the viability of biowaste anaerobic digestion on a large scale.
"This solution can be applied across Scotland to make a significant impact on waste recycling and renewable energy generation targets using the latest Monsal technology."
The development was welcomed by Mike Russell, environment minister for the Scottish Government, who said: "The extension to Deerdykes is precisely the kind of forward-thinking that we want local authorities to undertake as we push to minimise the waste generated in Scotland."
The plans were also well-received by Duncan McLaren, chief executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland who said: "This is an example of a big company taking sound initiative to help address the twin problems of climate change and excessive organic waste being sent to landfill."
A spokesman for Scottish Water explained the plant would at first take in food waste collected by local councils and it is hoped that the food industry will also use the facility to process its waste.
He said that "initial waste streams to provide raw materials have already been secured" and added that Scottish Water is currently trying attract the commercial sector to the operation.
More at New Energy Focus...
08 January 2009
US Farm Digester Saves Cost by Using Waste Tyres in Fixed Film Reactor
Northwest project to build tire-filled digester
By Ryan C. Christiansen
Biomass Magazine - Dec. 19, 2008, at 10:51 a.m. CST
Portland, Ore.-based Northwest Natural Gas Co. is partnering with BEF Renewable Inc. and Threemile Canyon Farms LLC to build the first anaerobic digester under NW Natural’s Smart Energy program. Launched in September 2007, the NW Natural’s Smart Energy program is a customer-funded carbon offset project to reduce methane emissions from dairy manure.
BEF Renewable is a for-profit business that is a wholly owned subsidiary of the nonprofit Bonneville Environmental Foundation in Portland. Threemile Canyon Farms is a 93,000-acre crop and dairy farm near Boardman, Ore.
According to NW Natural Gas, the anaerobic digestion technology that will be used at Threemile Canyon has been developed by engineers at the J-U-B Engineers Inc. office in Kennewick, Wash., and will digest manure from 1,200 dairy cows, approximately 144,000 pounds per day.
Work to build and install the digester begins this month and it is expected to be fully operational by mid-March. The digester will produce enough biogas to supply 102 homes, but the biogas will be used on site by Threemile Canyon.
It’s estimated that the digester will reduce carbon emissions by 1,500 tons per year, equal to the emissions from using natural gas in more than 400 homes.
The anaerobic digester that will be used at Threemile Canyon is based on the fixed film anaerobic digester design. According to the U.S. EPA, fixed film anaerobic digesters are typically used on dairy farms that use water to flush the manure from their barns into holding ponds. The digesters consist of a tank filled with plastic media on which bacteria grows. As the manure wastewater passes through the media-filled reactor, the bacteria on the media convert the organic matter in the wastewater into biogas.
The J-U-B anaerobic digester design incorporates a lined and covered lagoon instead of a higher-priced concrete or steel tank. The covered lagoon is filled with discarded automobile tires which trap and retain bacteria from the cow manure. The trapped bacteria convert the manure into biogas. According to Troy Green, executive vice president for J-U-B, the patented stacked tire matrix in the lagoon improves upon problems that have been associated with fixed film anaerobic digesters.
“Every media that I'm aware of today had plugging issues,” Green said. “You put media in a digester in a manure stream and it plugs up.” Using tires takes care of that problem, he said. Green said using tires also helps to bring down the price of the digester operation. “There is a price barrier out there for manure digesters,” he said, noting that most dairy farmers aren’t ready to shell out $1,200 to $1,400 per cow for a more expensive digester design. “By using tires, that media is a pretty cheap source,” he said. “It's actually a free source, or even a net source, depending on where we get those tires, and they are beneficially used as a media instead of thrown in a landfill.” Green said the lagoon basin will hold up to 35,000 tires. J-U-B worked with Washington State University to develop the technology, he said.
Under NW Natural’s Smart Energy program, residential customers can pay $6 per month or $.10 cents per therm of gas to offset their emissions and fund the Smart Energy program. Commercial customers can pay $10 per month or choose to contribute more. As of Nov. 30, more than 6,300 NW Natural customers, mostly residential customers and small businesses, were participating in the Smart Energy program. See more of this Tyre Digester article here.
By Ryan C. Christiansen
Biomass Magazine - Dec. 19, 2008, at 10:51 a.m. CST
Portland, Ore.-based Northwest Natural Gas Co. is partnering with BEF Renewable Inc. and Threemile Canyon Farms LLC to build the first anaerobic digester under NW Natural’s Smart Energy program. Launched in September 2007, the NW Natural’s Smart Energy program is a customer-funded carbon offset project to reduce methane emissions from dairy manure.
BEF Renewable is a for-profit business that is a wholly owned subsidiary of the nonprofit Bonneville Environmental Foundation in Portland. Threemile Canyon Farms is a 93,000-acre crop and dairy farm near Boardman, Ore.
According to NW Natural Gas, the anaerobic digestion technology that will be used at Threemile Canyon has been developed by engineers at the J-U-B Engineers Inc. office in Kennewick, Wash., and will digest manure from 1,200 dairy cows, approximately 144,000 pounds per day.
Work to build and install the digester begins this month and it is expected to be fully operational by mid-March. The digester will produce enough biogas to supply 102 homes, but the biogas will be used on site by Threemile Canyon.
It’s estimated that the digester will reduce carbon emissions by 1,500 tons per year, equal to the emissions from using natural gas in more than 400 homes.
The anaerobic digester that will be used at Threemile Canyon is based on the fixed film anaerobic digester design. According to the U.S. EPA, fixed film anaerobic digesters are typically used on dairy farms that use water to flush the manure from their barns into holding ponds. The digesters consist of a tank filled with plastic media on which bacteria grows. As the manure wastewater passes through the media-filled reactor, the bacteria on the media convert the organic matter in the wastewater into biogas.
The J-U-B anaerobic digester design incorporates a lined and covered lagoon instead of a higher-priced concrete or steel tank. The covered lagoon is filled with discarded automobile tires which trap and retain bacteria from the cow manure. The trapped bacteria convert the manure into biogas. According to Troy Green, executive vice president for J-U-B, the patented stacked tire matrix in the lagoon improves upon problems that have been associated with fixed film anaerobic digesters.
“Every media that I'm aware of today had plugging issues,” Green said. “You put media in a digester in a manure stream and it plugs up.” Using tires takes care of that problem, he said. Green said using tires also helps to bring down the price of the digester operation. “There is a price barrier out there for manure digesters,” he said, noting that most dairy farmers aren’t ready to shell out $1,200 to $1,400 per cow for a more expensive digester design. “By using tires, that media is a pretty cheap source,” he said. “It's actually a free source, or even a net source, depending on where we get those tires, and they are beneficially used as a media instead of thrown in a landfill.” Green said the lagoon basin will hold up to 35,000 tires. J-U-B worked with Washington State University to develop the technology, he said.
Under NW Natural’s Smart Energy program, residential customers can pay $6 per month or $.10 cents per therm of gas to offset their emissions and fund the Smart Energy program. Commercial customers can pay $10 per month or choose to contribute more. As of Nov. 30, more than 6,300 NW Natural customers, mostly residential customers and small businesses, were participating in the Smart Energy program. See more of this Tyre Digester article here.
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