Anaerobic digestion of biowaste in Indian municipalities. Effects on energy, fertilizers, water and the local environment
Author (Corporation)
Publication date
07/2021
Typ of student thesis
Course of study
Collections
Type
01A - Journal article
Editors
Editor (Corporation)
Supervisor
Parent work
Resources, Conservation and Recycling
Special issue
DOI of the original publication
Series
Series number
Volume
170
Issue / Number
Pages / Duration
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Publisher / Publishing institution
Elsevier
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Abstract
Anaerobic digestion (AD) of biowaste seems promising to provide renewable energy (biogas) and organic fertilizers (digestate) and mitigate environmental pollution in India. Intersectoral analyses of biowaste management in municipalities are needed to reveal benefits and trade-offs of AD at the implementation-level. Therefore, we applied material flow analyses (MFAs) to quantify effects of potential AD treatment of biowaste on energy and fertilizer supply, water consumption and environmental pollution in two villages, two towns and two cities in Maharashtra. Results show that in villages AD of available manure and crop residues can cover over half of the energy consumption for cooking (EC) and reduce firewood dependency. In towns and cities, AD of municipal biowaste is more relevant for organic fertilizer supply and pollution control because digestate can provide up to several times the nutrient requirements for crop production, but can harm ecosystems when discharged to the environment. Hence, in addition to energy from municipal biowaste - which can supply 4-6% of EC - digestate valorisation seems vital but requires appropriate post-treatment, quality control and trust building with farmers. To minimize trade-offs, water-saving options should be considered because 2-20% of current groundwater abstraction in municipalities is required to treat all available biowaste with 'wet' AD systems compared to <3% with 'dry' AD systems. We conclude that biowaste management with AD requires contextualized solutions in the setting of energy, fertilizers and water at the implementation-level to conceive valorization strategies for all AD products, reduce environmental pollution and minimize trade-offs with water resources.
Keywords
Biowaste management, Environmental pollution, Material flow analysis (MFA), Renewable energies, Sustainable agriculture
Subject (DDC)
600 - Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften
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ISBN
ISSN
1879-0658
0921-3449
0921-3449
Language
English
Created during FHNW affiliation
Yes
Strategic action fields FHNW
Publication status
Published
Review
Peer review of the complete publication
Open access category
Hybrid
Citation
GROSS, Thomas, Lena BREITENMOSER, Christoph HUGI und Thomas WINTGENS, 2021. Anaerobic digestion of biowaste in Indian municipalities. Effects on energy, fertilizers, water and the local environment. Resources, Conservation and Recycling. Juli 2021. Bd. 170. DOI 10.1016/j.resconrec.2021.105569. Verfügbar unter: https://doi.org/10.26041/fhnw-3771