ADVICE & OPINION
COMPLIANCE
METHANE REDUCTION:
HOW FMS CAN GET AHEAD
In association with
&23 Vaw more than countrieV pleGJe to ViJnifi cantl\ cut emiVVionV of
methane Ƈ a powerful JreenhouVe JaV reVponViEle for arounG per cent of
JloEal warminJ to Gate 'r 6tephen :iVe, &hief 6trateJic 'eYelopment 2ffi cer for
enYironmental EiotechnoloJ\ compan\, $GYetec eplainV what thiV meanV for )0V www.advetec.com
The Global Methane Pledge commits signatories
to reducing their overall emissions by 30 per
cent by 2030, compared with 2020 levels.
The new initiative emphasises making cuts by
tackling emissions from sources including oil and
gas wells, livestock farming and decaying waste in
landfill sites. According to Dr Stephen Wise from
environmental biotechnology company, Advetec,
it’s the latter which provides FMs with an actionable
opportunity to get ahead in minimising methane and
meeting reduction targets.
Where does methane come from?
Methane is generated under anaerobic conditions. A
simple way to visualise this is a cow. The cow takes
in food and breaks it down within its stomach under
anaerobic conditions. As the food breaks down in the
stomach it generates methane which is expelled into
the atmosphere. Methane is an issue as it is 80 times
more potent that carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas.
What’s waste got to do with it?
Landfill is inherently an anaerobic system. Waste goes
into the ground, it’s covered by new waste the next
day and very little air ingresses. This provides the
perfect conditions for organic waste to breakdown
and emit methane – just as a cow’s food does inside
the stomach. There may be some gas collection
infrastructure in place, but methane will always
escape into the atmosphere as it’s a natural process.
Therefore, in order to reach the targets set out
at COP26, we must address the fate of all waste,
including the residual non-recyclable waste – or the
forgotten waste. The Pledge, along with rising costs of
landfill, waste segregation targets and the increasing
value of the green pound, have created the right
conditions to drive change and innovate the way they
collect, treat and ultimately dispose of waste.
But you don’t send any waste to landfill?
You may think this to be the case as you have waste
contracts in place, recycling bins aplenty and a
widespread desire to reduce waste to landfill so it
appears that all is in hand. But what many businesses
don’t know is that despite these eŽ orts, 50 per cent of
14 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2022
waste still goes to landfill or for incineration.
This 50 per cent is made up of mixed residual waste
– the waste that can’t be segregated or sorted for
recycling because it is contaminated. This could be a
half empty drinks bottle, a yoghurt pot or a sandwich
wrapper with crusts in, for example. This portion o— en
gets overlooked altogether but it’s the organic matter
that produces methane under anaerobic conditions.
The first steps of reducing methane is to ensure
that FMs and their organisations have a greater
understanding of the waste supply chain as a whole
so that they can take full accountability for every
single decision made. It can be easy to rely on
outsourced partners to do the green thinking but FMs
need to understand their diŽ erent waste streams,
how they are handled, how they can be handled and
how all of this fits within the wider waste journey. This
knowledge will help FMs to query waste handlers’
choices, dictate desired waste outcomes and chart a
course for continual improvement.
What changes can you make?
Reducing widespread use of landfill relies on there
being other aŽ ordable, accessible alternative
solutions and there have been great strides forward
with improved practices and the use of innovative
treatment technologies – including:
Greater refocus on sorting and separating waste
on site can yield green benefits. Sorting waste
into three main streams – clean organic (food
waste), residual (mixed waste) and segregated
recyclates – at source helps FMs to better
understand their waste and the disposal routes
that are appropriate and available. This is far
from innovative, but a surprising number of
organisations still don’t do this. Moreover, FMs
need to learn that if organic matter is present
within the recyclates, they will not be recycled
and are headed to landfill or incineration.
Taking waste oŽ site comes with an additional
environmental cost as lorries generate carbon
emissions, so there are real benefits to treating
some waste streams on site. Biotechnology has
come into its own here, particularly with residual
waste, as this can’t be sent for recycling because
it comprises an organic fraction. Biotechnology
makes it possible to reduce the mass of this waste
stream by typically 50 per cent on site – which
means fewer collections and less road related
carbon, as well as cost savings. Perhaps most
significantly, it results in considerably less waste
going to landfill or EfW.
Another highly eŽ ective step is to send all
separately collected food waste for anaerobic
digestion – a process which can be used to
create green energy – electricity, gas or fuel
and considerable carbon savings. The circle is
completed perfectly when organisations buy that
green energy back.
The pressure for FMs to think greener is ever
increasing and as long as sustainability remains
at the top of the global agenda, it’s here to stay.
From achieving net zero to cutting methane, it can
seem overwhelming but by championing waste
management at board level, educating business
leaders about the waste journey and the technologies
available and setting their own targets, FMs can
quickly become ambassadors for positive change.
FMJ is hosting a webinar with Advetec on the
26‚ƒ January 2022: How biotechnology is helping
FMs achieve their sustainability goals and reduce
waste. For more details visit: https://us02web.
zoom.us/webinar/register/5616351723856/WN_
I72h2PxfS3awLc0T6378YQ
/www.advetec.com
/WN_I72h2PxfS3awLc0T6378YQ
