The potential of MICRO-DIGESTERS to have a mega impact

The sector development plan for micro-digesters is positioning the technology to contribute greatly to a green circular economy through education, upskilling and job creation.

In early 2020, SANEDI commissioned the University of Johannesburg’s Process, Energy and Environmental Technology Station (UJ PEETS) to take stock of the status of micro-digesters in South Africa and of the technology locally and globally.

Between July 2020 and March 2022, UJ PEETS, together with the DSI/NRF/Newton Fund Trilateral Research Chair in Transformative Innovation, the Fourth Industrial Revolution and Sustainable Development (UJ-TRCTI), carried out research that included 11 stakeholder engagements and an in-depth desk review of academic and industry literature. UJ PEETS also did a fieldwork review of the status of microdigesters in Gauteng, Limpopo and KwaZulu-Natal that had been installed over the previous five years with SANEDI funding.

The research furthermore drew on inputs from the Southern African Biogas Association (SABIA) and the microdigester working group, as well as UJ PEETS’ and SANEDI’s partnerships with the Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development, the University of Venda in Limpopo and the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The ongoing work to create a national waste-to-energy roadmap was also taken into account.

The project culminated in the development of a sector development plan (SDP) that outlines three pathways open to the micro-digester sector in South Africa to ensure growth and sustainability by 2030:

1. Increase uptake of micro-digester technology in rural areas.

2. Pilot micro-digester use in urban areas, especially in gardens, food establishments and small housing developments.

3. Implement cross-cutting actions to create a supportive enabling environment relating to skills and training, financing, regulation and policy.

The SDP contributes to the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy’s 2019 Integrated Resource Plan, which recognises biomass and biogas as energy sources that can support a just energy transition, including through job creation. It also contributes to the National Development Plan 2030 and the need to move South Africa towards lowcarbon and clean energy sources.