Waste To Energy Plants

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Context: The Kerala government recently announced the State’s first waste-to-energy project in Kozhikode.

Details:

The proposed facility is expected to be built in two years and produce approximately 6 MW of energy.
There are about 100 such projects across the country, but only a handful of them are operational due to various production and operational challenges.

What do these plants do?

Waste-to-energy projects use non-recyclable solid waste to generate electricity.
This process increases the country's power generation capacity and eases the burden of solid waste management (SWM).

Need:

In general, solid waste in India is biodegradable organic waste that can be converted into organic compost or biogas; 25-30% non-biodegradable dry waste; and about 15% grass, stone and waste waste.
Only 2-3% of non-biodegradable solid waste, including hard plastic, metal and e-waste, is recycled.
The rest consists of low-grade plastic, clothing and non-recyclable textiles.
This non-recyclable dry waste portion is the most challenging part of the current SWM system; the presence of this material also reduces the efficiency of processing dry and other wet waste.
Plants use this part. Waste is burned to produce heat that is converted into electricity.

Reasons for failure:

Although fossil energy plants seem like a simple solution, there are some challenges for their implementation.
The first is the low-calorie value of solid waste in India due to improper segregation.
- The calorific value of mixed Indian waste is about 1500 kcal/kg, making it unsuitable for power generation.
- The calorific value of coal is about 8000 kcal/kg.
- Biodegradable waste has a high moisture content and cannot be used to generate electricity.
- The calorific value of separated dry waste and dry unprocessed waste is higher, 2800-3000 kcal/kg, which is enough for power plants.
- However, segregation (preferably at the source, if not at the processing plant) must be arranged for incoming waste to have this calorific value.
The second is the high cost of energy production.
- The cost of generating energy from waste is around ₹ 7-8/unit, while the cost boards incur in the state to purchase electricity from coal, hydro and solar power plants is around ₹ 3-4/unit.
- As a result, many energy-power projects fail due to wrong estimates, high expectations, wrong characterization studies and other conditions on the ground.

How can these issues be resolved?

Working with the waste-to-energy plant depends on parameters such as collection efficiency, waste segregation, humidity and operational efficiency of existing waste treatment plants.
If this plant has operational problems (as it usually does), the nature of the waste will have a high moisture content and low calorific value, which will harm electricity production.
Building such projects is complex and requires the full support of municipalities, the state and the public.
To overcome various challenges, the municipality must ensure that only non-biodegradable dry waste is sent to the plant and manage other waste separately.
There should be a tripartite agreement between the municipality, the plant operator, and the power distribution agency.
It is also crucial to conduct field studies and learn from the experience of other projects.

MUST READ: https://www.iasgyan.in/blogs/waste-to-energy

PRACTICE QUESTION

Q) Discuss the significance of waste-to-energy plants from an economic as well as ecological perspective. (150 words)