Composting for greenhouse gas emissions management

Elaine Wang Community Climate Action Third Annual Vermont Organics Recycling Summit March 31, 2009

Case Study
Northern Vermont Composting Partnership (NVCP) Hardwick area businesses and schools Diversion of food scraps Study tracks activities and applies emissions factors Goal: calculator and net emissions from base case

Comparison - Overall
COMPOST SCENARIO Setup Facilities Hauling Processing Application/Sequestration WASTE SCENARIO

Comparison
SETUP [Planning] [Outreach] Tote manufacturing [Tote delivery] [Planning] [Outreach] [Dumpster manufacturing] [Dumpster delivery]

Comparison
FACILITIES [Buckets] [Hot water to wash out buckets] [Buckets] [Hot water to rinse food] Plastic liners In-sink garbage disposal [Wastewater management] [Packer trucks rinsed]

Comparison
HAULING To Highfields [To Coventry ]

Comparison
PROCESSING Hot water to wash out totes Pile turning, machinery [Machinery emissions] CH4 and N2Oemissions from pile Landfill emissions, pre-cap [CO2 emissions from pile] Importing carbon

Comparison
APPLICATION [CO2 emissions from burnt LFG] CH4 emissions from leakage Displaced emissions from NEPool [Other environmental impacts from grid generation, transmission] Averting nitrogen fertilizer production [Avoided NO2 losses from fertilizer application] [Other environmental impacts from fertilizer and fungicide use]

Comparison
SEQUESTRATION Soil Landfill

Emissions Factors
Compost Scenario
tote material, 7.5% recycled hauling to THI hot water to wash out totes importing carbon importing carbon pile turning soil sequestration fertilizer production offset 0.02351 MTCO2e/tote 0.00082 MTCO2e/mile diesel dump truck 0.00031 MTCO2e/tote 0.00079 MTCO2e/mile gas light truck 0.00070 MTCO2e/mile diesel light truck 0.01134 MTCO2e/gallon diesel fuel -0.01008 MTCO2e/half tote of food waste -0.00993 MTCO2e/half tote of food waste

Emissions Factors
Coventry Scenario
plastic liners garbage disposal landfill sequestration emissions from landfill pre-cap displaced emissions from grid fugitive emissions post cap 0.000094 MTCO2e/one bag negligible -0.0040 MTCO2e/half tote 0.03234 MTCO2e/half tote -0.000000131 MTCO2e/half tote 0.00055 MTCO2e/half tote

Sample Results1
APR 07-APR08 Coventry scenario Highfields compost scenario Net emissions from project, first year Emissions avoided per 48 gallon tote MTCO2e 48.2 -32.3 -80.6 -0.096

This project offset the equivalent* of burning over 9000 gallons of gasoline in this period at over 11 gallons of gasoline per tote
1

Preliminary

CO2 emission from a gallon of gasoline = 19.4 pounds/gallon

+
Benefits
Reductions in greenhouse gas emissions
from carbon sequestration in soil from avoided fertilizer production from avoided plastic liner production from reduced landfill operations

Benefits (contd)
Turns nutrients back into soil Has saved money for participating businesses Raises awareness of food waste generators re: composting Benefits from compost

x
Costs
Energy is not produced Participants may need to be financially subsidized


For more information:
ekaube@gmail.com june@highfieldsinstitute.org