There are about 30 biogas production facilities operating in Ukrainian landfills. On average, each of them has a capacity of 1 MW, which is enough to power 1,000 households. It may not seem very impressive, but biogas production from waste has good prospects.
This was reported by the media outlet Texty.org.ua.
Biogas – a hazard and a resource
Organic waste is not plastic; it rots. At landfills, it is "covered" by new layers of waste, which blocks oxygen access. Under these conditions, biogas is formed, the main component of which is methane. Colorless and odorless, it accumulates in the thickness of the garbage and can cause a disaster from the slightest spark. In 2016, this happened near Lviv, where a pile of slowly smoldering garbage took the lives of four people.
In addition to safety risks, there are also environmental risks. Biogas enters the soil and groundwater, and from there into rivers, where it can harm living organisms. It should not be forgotten that this "garbage" gas is one of those that cause the greenhouse effect.
Therefore, there are two options: neutralize it or collect and use it. This is required by the Ukrainian law "On Waste Management."
How to collect all the gas from a landfill
Biogas collection must be planned at the landfill design stage. Existing landfills currently use a vertical well layout, which is ineffective. According to Yuriy Matveyev, a leading expert at the Bioenergy Association, this method allows for the collection of up to 50% of the biogas produced.
"If we cover the landfill with a polyethylene membrane and collect gas under it, the efficiency can be significantly higher – up to 75 or even 90 percent," adds the expert.
Ideally, horizontal pipes should be laid every 8-10 meters of the waste layer during the construction of the landfill. This way, almost all biogas can be extracted from the landfill.
The potential of Ukrainian landfills
Currently, about 25% of biogas in Ukraine is obtained from waste. The main source remains agricultural raw materials.
However, in the long term, the combined capacity of all biogas sources would allow us to meet our total fuel needs. But all this requires enormous and long-term work.
Theoretically, Ukraine will create centralized landfills instead of dozens of smaller ones. This is if the country begins to implement a program to modernize its waste management system. If organic waste is collected separately at these landfills, it will be possible to install biogas plants nearby.
EcoPolitic previously reported that, globally, biomethane production reached 10 billion cubic meters, a sevenfold increase over 10 years.
In February this year, Ukrainian producers exported biogas to the European Union for the first time.
