EDMC plans biogas plant to manage cow dung in Ghazipur
NEWDELHI: The East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) is setting up its first biogas plant on two acres of land near the Ghazipur dairy.
The project aims to produce electricity from the cattle waste and address the twin problem of waste disposal and power generation in neighbouring areas.
The proposed plant is expected to consume at least 100 metric tonnes of cow dung every day and produce around two megawatts of electricity that would be fed to the grid.
“We completed the bidding process on Tuesday and will soon finalise the contractor. One of the preconditions is that the contractor would have to buy cattle waste from the owners in Ghazipur dairy only. The bidder who would pay the highest amount to the cattle owners will be awarded the contract,” said Bipin Bihari, EDMC mayor.
Biogas is naturally produced in landfill sites as bacteria anaerobically break down the waste. But normally, the methane escapes into the atmosphere where it contributes to global warming. Biogas plants tap this methane to generate electricity with the help of turbines and generators that convert form of energy to another.
The European Union is the world leader in biogas electricity production, with more than 10 GW installed. In India power production from biogas has started in a very small scale in some states.
Bihari said these dairies currently struggle to cope with the knee-high level of cow and buffalo dung on their premises and till last year, the corporation was clueless about how to dispose of the waste.
“About 110 metric tonnes of cattle waste is generated on daily basis at the Ghazipur dairy and in the absence of any system to dispose it properly, people ended up dumping it in storm water drains. It leads to massive water logging in area,” said a senior EDMC official.
The Public-private-partnership project, once become operational, will not just solve the problem of disposing cattle dung but also help civic agency generate revenue by generation electricity.
“Around one tonne of waste has the capacity to generate 60 metric cubes of gas which can be used to produce electricity to light at least 200 streetlights for 8 hours,” said the official
To ensure the project works efficiently, the EDMC will also fund the project will R 2.5 crore and supervise its performance from time to time.
The South Delhi Municipal Corporation is also working over the similar project to use the cattle waste generated in Nangli Dairy, Goyala Dairy and Kakrola Dairy and two cow shelters at Najafgarh for power generation.