materiaalitkiertoon.fi @circwaste
Locally produced biogas strengthens regional economies, reduces climate emissions and improves security of supply.
Sustainable energy production from biogas
Municipalities can promote the production and use of biogas in many ways
are expected to make political decisions, provide strategic guidance, • Municipalities work together with stakeholders and take concrete action. municipality should reserve a site for biogas production in zoning, prepare for • The investments in its budget, and ensure clear permit procedures for plants. volumes of raw materials suitable for biogas production, including • The biodegradable waste, and biogas production potential within the municipality’s area should be looked at carefully. The biowaste handling method and waste treatment possibilities in nearby areas should also be taken into consideration.
collection of biowaste should be made easy for residents, and the • Separate municipality should communicate about its benefits. use of biogas can be promoted by zoning sites for refuelling stations • Transport and streamlining their permit processes. Low-emission vehicles can be given bonuses, including free or cheaper parking.
and transport procurements, • Inthevehicle aim should be to favour biogas fuelled fleet. • CircBrief – best practices of circular economy • March 2023 •
Biogas is a versatile energy source Biogas is mainly produced from sewage sludge, biowaste, landfill gases and agricultural biomasses. For some time now, approx. one terawatt hour (TWh) of biogas has been produced in Finland every year. While around 60% of this amount has been used for heat production, its transport use has grown. The Finnish Government has set the target for biogas production at four terawatt hours by 2030. The objective is to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the transport, agriculture and waste sectors and to improve security of supply. The possibilities for producing and using biogas in municipalities are diverse, and biogas production can improve self-sufficiency in energy. Biogas can be used for electricity and heat production, as a transport fuel and in industrial processes, for example to replace natural gas. Biogas may also be a source of hydrogen in the future. Biogas can be transported along a pipeline, in a processed and pressurised form in containers, and in liquefied form in tankers. When planning biogas production, attention should be paid to the process as a whole. It is important to ensure sustainable nutrient circulation and verify that there is a use for the produced biogas. The optimal use of biogas depends largely on what the municipality is currently using to produce energy. Few alternatives fuels are available for HGVs, which is why biogas can be a viable option. On the other hand, several sustainable options are available for heating.
Regional biogas production – this is how Central Finland did it In Central Finland, the production and use of biogas have been promoted in a goal-oriented manner. Twenty years in the building, the biogas ecosystem in Central Finland is one of the most significant in Finland outside the natural gas network. It comprises companies, research institutes and educational institutions, regional and municipal actors and extensive transport use of biomethane. In 2021, approximately 50 GWh of biogas was produced in Central Finland. This figure also includes gas collected from Mustankorkea landfill. In early 2023, biogas was produced at five and biomethane at three plants. Landfill gas is additionally used to produce electricity and district heating. Biomethane is distributed at six points in Central Finland, of which one distributes liquefied methane for HGVs, and there are plans to increase the number of refuelling stations in the future.
Collaboration on creating a market for biogas In Central Finland, exploiting the potential of biogas has required strong collaboration between private and public actors in the region. Local markets, especially pressurised gas markets, have been grown but there is also a demand for recycled nutrients and soil improvers. There would also be a market for liquefied biogas outside the region, for example as an energy source for HGVs, shipping and industry. Determined efforts have also been made in Central Finland to develop the transport biomethane market. The City of Jyväskylä and the local Mustankorkea waste facility have required that biomethane be used in procurements of buses and waste transports, among other things.
Biogas can be used for electricity and heat production, as a transport fuel and in industrial processes, for example to replace natural gas.
• CircBrief – best practices of circular economy • Sustainable energy production from biogas • March 2023 •
Public administration organisations use gas vehicles, including refuse collection vehicles, buses and cars owned by the City of Jyväskylä. Private individuals and companies also use gas-powered vehicles, such as taxis and distribution fleet.
Biogas has significant untapped potential The biogas potential of Central Finland is around 460 GWh, which means that an almost ten-fold increase in the region’s biogas production could be possible. Agricultural biomasses, which could generate around 400 GWh of energy a year, represent the greatest and almost totally untapped raw material potential. Approx. 165 GWh of the unused biogas potential in Central Finland could be harnessed for production by 2030, which would mean one large, five medium-sized and twenty small biogas plants in total. Around 22,000 GWh of energy was used in the region in 2019, of which less than 35% was produced from non-renewable sources. The 460 GWh of energy contained in biogas could, for example, replace 56% of the oil used for heating buildings or 15% of the energy needs of road transport in the region.
Illustration of the biogas ecosystem
Communities
ELECTRICITY AND/OR HEAT PRODUCTION
Biodegradable waste
Sewage sludges
Agricultural side streams
BIOGAS PLANT
Transport fuel use
Methane
Biogas (CH4 + CO2 + pollutants)
PROCESSING
Digestate
COMPOSTOR (or other treatment)
Carbon dioxide
Nutrients, soil improvement
Agriculture
In a biogas ecosystem, energy and nutrients can be efficiently recovered and reused!
• CircBrief – best practices of circular economy • Sustainable energy production from biogas • March 2023 •
All biowaste in Finland would be suitable for fuelling sustainable transport
Biowaste that could be sorted for recovery still accounts for as much as about one third of mixed waste.
If all biowaste contained in mixed waste in Finland were sorted and taken to a biogas plant, this could fuel as many as 80,000 cars for a year.
Household biowaste in Central Finland has large energy potential total of 20,000 MWh of energy • Afrom biowaste (13,000 tonnes
•
in 2021) could be produced in a biogas plant in Central Finland – corresponding to 2 million litres of diesel. This amount of energy could fuel up to 2,000 cars or around 50 gaspowered buses, which would reduce CO2 emissions from transport by several thousand tonnes.
the latest study indicates that • While the volume of biowaste contained
in mixed waste in Central Finland is less than the national average, or as little as 23%, it is estimated that up to over 8,000 tonnes of biowaste from households were incinerated in 2021.
biowaste fractions from • Insuchaddition, sectors as trade and industry contain significant additional biogas potential that could be exploited!
Up to 154,000 gas-powered cars could be fuelled by the energy produced from all biowaste generated in Finland. This is more than all cars in Central Finland put together.
CircBrief – best practices of circular economy:
Sustainable energy production from biogas March 2023 Writers:
Sari Piippo, Tiina K. M. Karppinen, Hanna Savolahti ja Tuuli Myllymaa / Suomen ympäristökeskus (Syke) Outi Pakarinen / Jyväskylän yliopisto Enni Huotari / Keski-Suomen liitto Saija Rasi / Luonnonvarakeskus References: AFRY. 2022. Asumisessa syntyvien jätteiden erilliskeräys Keski-Suomessa. Loppuraportti 14.12.2022. Keski-Suomen liitto. https://keskisuomi.fi/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Loppuraportti_AFRY-KeskiSuomen-liitto-141222-Julkinen.pdf Benet Oy. 2020. Keski-Suomen energiatase 2019. Keski-Suomen liitto. https://keskisuomi.fi/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2021/01/Keski-Suomenenergiatase-2019.pdf Envitecpolis 2021.Biokaasun nykytilaselvitys Keski-Suomessa. Keski-Suomen liitto, 1/2021. https://keskisuomi.fi/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2021/02/202102-01-Keski-Suomen-Liitto-Nykytilaselvitys.pdf Keski-Suomen liitto. 2021. Keski-Suomen sekajätteen koostumus on selvitetty Keski-Suomen liitto (keskisuomi.fi) Kymäläinen, M. ja Pakarinen, O. (toim.) 2015. Biokaasuteknologia: raakaaineet, lopputuotteet ja prosessointi. E-kirja. Suomen Biokaasuyhdistys ry. https://www.theseus.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/104180/HAMK_Biokaasun_ tuotanto_2015_ekirja.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y (theseus.fi) Marttinen, S., Luostarinen, S., Winquist, E., Timonen, K. 2015. Rural biogas: feasibility and role in Finnish energy system. Cleen Oy. Research Report no 1.1.3–4. http://bestfinalreport.fi/files/Rural biogas - feasibility and role in the Finnish energy system.pdf (bestfinalreport.fi) SBB. 2023. Biokaasu 2030. Verkkosivu. Suomen biokierto ja biokaasu ry. https://biokierto.fi/biokaasu/biokaasu2030/ TEM. 2020. Biokaasuohjelmaa valmistelevan työryhmän loppuraportti. Työja elinkeinoministeriön julkaisuja. 2020:3. https://julkaisut.valtioneuvosto.fi/ bitstream/handle/10024/162032/TEM_2020_3_Biokaasuohjelmaa valmistelevan tyoryhman loppur .pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y (valtioneuvosto.fi) Virolainen-Hynnä, A. 2020. Biokaasun tuotanto ja käyttö Suomessa 2030. Suomen biokierto ja biokaasu ry:n julkaisuja. Verkkojulkaisu. https://biokierto. fi/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Biokaasu2030_raportti_17062020.pdf (biokierto.fi) YM. 2022. Keskipitkän aikavälin ilmastopolitiikan suunnitelma. Kohti hiilineutraalia yhteiskuntaa 2035. Ympäristöministeriön julkaisuja 2022:12. https://julkaisut.valtioneuvosto.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/164186/YM_2022_12. pdf?sequence=4&isAllowed=y (valtioneuvosto.fi) Alueellisten jätevirtojen hyödyntämiseen tehoa. Verkkosivu (materiaalitkiertoon.fi) https://www.materiaalitkiertoon.fi/fi-FI/ Circwaste/Osahankkeet_alueittain/KeskiSuomi/Alueellisten_jatevirtojen_ hyodyntamiseen(48151 Communications specialist: Hannele Ahponen, Syke Graphic design: Satu Turtiainen, Syke Layout and illustrations: Anna Polkutie Cover photo: stock.adobe.com Helsinki 10/2023 ISBN 978-952-11-5602-1 (pdf) ISBN 978-952-11-5603-8 (print)
LIFE15 IPE FI 004 Circwaste-project receives financial support from EU for the production of its materials. The views reflected within the contents are entirely the project’s own and the EU commission is not responsible for any use of them.