India generates about 1,45,128 tonne of waste daily (or around 53 million tonne annually) and on an average 46 cent of it is processed daily, according to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE). For a country like India that is heavily dependent on expensive imported oil and gas imports as well as coal for meeting its energy requirements, it definitely makes more sense to look at alternative resources. And this is where the Waste to Energy programme propagated to recover energy in the form of Biogas/ BioCNG/ Power from urban, industrial and agricultural wastes gains importance. Besides, it also promotes off-grid connectivity.

Challenges:

• While a programme of this kind requires government support, the challenge is to ensure that various Ministries work in synergy.
• Another, challenge for Waste to Energy management is, how various schemes can become revenue generator for small players. But, there is a hitch here—shifting social dynamics.
• Maintaining cattle is becoming difficult for an individual. Therefore, individual biogas plants are seeing a decline.
• However, scope for larger private plants is growing with more private diaries coming into business.
• There are still many challenges remaining to promote this programme as it also means undoing a social mind-set.
• It also needs to be ensured that Waste to Energy plants themselves do not violate any environmental norms particularly for municipal solid wastes.
• Marketing of the concept is another uphill task which requires governmental involvement as well as financial support is needed in setting up a plant, which is not cheap.

Compressed Biogas (CBG):

• According to experts, CBG has the potential to boost availability of more affordable transport fuels, better use of agricultural residue, and cattle dung, as well as to provide an additional revenue source to farmers.
• Called Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT), it is expected to benefit vehicle-users as well as farmers and entrepreneurs.
• Besides, CBG will also help bring down dependency on crude oil and gas imports.
• The potential for CBG production from various sources in India is estimated at about 62 million tonnes annually. CBG can be produced from various bio-mass/waste sources, including agricultural residue, sugarcane press mud, distillery spent wash, cattle dung and sewage treatment plant waste.
• The other waste streams, like rotten potatoes from cold storages, rotten vegetables, dairy plants, chicken/ poultry litter, food waste, horticulture waste, forestry residues and treated organic waste from industrial effluent treatment plants (ETPs) can be used to generate biogas.
• In fact, CBG is similar to the commercially available natural gas in its composition and energy potential and can be used as an alternative, renewable automotive fuel.
• Given the abundance of biomass in the country, CBG has the potential to replace CNG in automotive, industrial and commercial uses in the coming years.
• Industry experts say that if the country exploits this, no surprises then that gas imports will come down to zero one day.
• There are multiple benefits of converting agricultural residue and cattle dung into CBG on a commercial scale:
  • Responsible waste management, reduction in carbon emissions and pollution
  • Additional revenue source for farmers
  • Boost to entrepreneurship, rural economy and employment
  • Support to national commitments in achieving climate change goals
  • Reduction in import of natural gas and crude oil
  • Buffer against crude oil/gas price fluctuations.
• But, a lot depends on pricing as India is a price sensitive market.
• The Working Group on Biofuels is in the process of finalising a pan-India pricing model for CBG.
• Besides, according to the proposal, the entrepreneurs would be able to separately market the other by-products from these plants, including bio-manure, carbon-dioxide, etc. to enhance returns on investment.

While solar and wind have developed a glam quotient, they can only be intermittent to coal or other fossil fuel. Biogas could work in the favour of India. However, there are challenges like CBG quality and marketing. Biogas cannot succeed without governmental support as it is still at a very nascent stage. But once it takes off, the government can play the role of a facilitator and allow private sector to run the business.