and fuel production Harm Grobrgge European Biogas Association - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Harm Grobrügge – European Biogas Association

Biogas done right – supporting food and fuel production

• Agriculture is strongly affected by

climate change

• At the same time, the sector’s

contribution to the total GHG emissions of the EU is nearly 10%

• 60% of all methane emissions

globally originate from the energy, waste and agriculture sectors

Strong connection between agriculture and climate

Contribution of agriculture to total GHG emissions (%), EU-28, 2015 Source: European Environment Agency

• Agricultural systems must become

more efficient: Increase productivity and resilience while limiting environmental impacts

• Innovation and creativity with

BiogasDoneRight: high carbon savings and positive environmental externalities, e.g. increased carbon content of soils, increased soil fertility and lower input of chemical fertilizers

EU agriculture must be made fit for the future

Eliminate deforestation Food security Climate smart

Source: CIB – Consorzio Italiano Biogas

• Sequential cropping:

harvesting two crops instead of one on the same field in a single year

• Nutrients being recycled

back to the field through biogas digestate

Biogas Done Right

Source: CIB – Consorzio Italiano Biogas

Conclusions

• The Italian experience has shown that the integration of biogas production with the farming

activities allows the continuation of successful food and feed output from the farms and the reduction of production costs, thus yielding a better economic profitability of the agribusiness.

• The “Centro Ricerche Produzione Animali” (CRPA) in Reggio Emilia compared 3 BDR farms to farms

with AD using conventional monocrop maize with chemical fertilizers. Result: GHG emissions of biomethane production were reduced by 86% in the worst case or became even negative in the best case because of the avoided emissions of stored raw manure in open ponds.

• The distinction in EU renewables legislation (RED II) between food and no-food crops does not

make practical and logical sense: what matters is that more biomass is created on existing farmland without harming current food and feed production.

• Biogasdoneright is currently implemented in Italy, should be expanded in other parts of Europe as
• well. The BDR concept is consistent with the 4 pour 1000 initiative launched in France aiming to

show that agriculture and agricultural soils in particular can play a crucial role in GHG mitigation.