Anaerobic Digestion for Developing Countries with Cold Climates
Utilizing solar heat to address technical challenges and facilitating dissemination through the use of carbon finance
Summary
A large proportion of the rural poor in developing countries have no access to a secure source of
energy. The rural poor in developing countries rely primarily on traditional biomasses, such as
wood and charcoal. The reliance on traditional biomasses and solid fuels result in substantial
human, social and environmental cost. To tackle these costs a switch to a clean fuel is required.
One of the solutions is anaerobic digestion (AD) of manure or other biodegradable matter to
produce a clean fuel: biogas.
The principle of AD has been known for 3-4 centuries and in 1920 the first digester was
designed for house on site biogas production. A digester is a technology which converts the
commonly found wastes in rural areas, manures, in a controlled anaerobic environment to biogas
and an excellent fertilizer. Biogas is a clean, convenient, versatile and environmentally benign
fuel which does not pollute the indoor air. Furthermore, a biogas plant has several additional
benefits, such as replacing bought or collected wood (time or revenue savings), provision of light
by biogas lamps, empowerment of women by relieving them of the drudgeries of traditional fuel
gathering. A toilet is in most cases attached to a digester which improves sanitation, a significant
virtue since the majority of the poor lack access to sanitation. The effluent from the digester,
digestate, has a high fertilizer value comparable to chemical fertilizers. Digestate is also an
excellent fish feed and can enhance fish yields. The adoption of biogas digesters has considerable
spillovers to the local, national and even to a global level. For instance, at local level, employment
opportunities, skills development and reduced pressure on the forest. At a national level, it leads
to less health costs, more employment, and potential foreign exchange earnings and at a global
level: greenhouse gas emission mitigation. Consequently, the cumulative effects of these benefits
alleviate poverty and contribute to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.
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Anaerobic Digestion for Developing Countries with Cold Climates
Utilizing solar heat to address technical challenges and facilitating dissemination through the use of carbon finance
Summary
A large proportion of the rural poor in developing countries have no access to a secure source of
energy. The rural poor in developing countries rely primarily on traditional biomasses, such as
wood and charcoal. The reliance on traditional biomasses and solid fuels result in substantial
human, social and environmental cost. To tackle these costs a switch to a clean fuel is required.
One of the solutions is anaerobic digestion (AD) of manure or other biodegradable matter to
produce a clean fuel: biogas.
The principle of AD has been known for 3-4 centuries and in 1920 the first digester was
designed for house on site biogas production. A digester is a technology which converts the
commonly found wastes in rural areas, manures, in a controlled anaerobic environment to biogas
and an excellent fertilizer. Biogas is a clean, convenient, versatile and environmentally benign
fuel which does not pollute the indoor air. Furthermore, a biogas plant has several additional
benefits, such as replacing bought or collected wood (time or revenue savings), provision of light
by biogas lamps, empowerment of women by relieving them of the drudgeries of traditional fuel
gathering. A toilet is in most cases attached to a digester which improves sanitation, a significant
virtue since the majority of the poor lack access to sanitation. The effluent from the digester,
digestate, has a high fertilizer value comparable to chemical fertilizers. Digestate is also an
excellent fish feed and can enhance fish yields. The adoption of biogas digesters has considerable
spillovers to the local, national and even to a global level. For instance, at local level, employment
opportunities, skills development and reduced pressure on the forest. At a national level, it leads
to less health costs, more employment, and potential foreign exchange earnings and at a global
level: greenhouse gas emission mitigation. Consequently, the cumulative effects of these benefits
alleviate poverty and contribute to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.
Download
Anaerobic Digestion for Developing Countries with Cold Climates
