2 Oct 2024, Port Vila – The possibilities of turning waste into energy and how this can contribute to a circular economy were explored during the Regional Circular Economy workshop being held in Port Vila this week. Waste-to-Energy technologies were highlighted as ways to improve the management of waste and harness the energy within the materials that are often seen as just trash.
Pyrolysis technologies that can turn plastics and used oil into energy, using an ancient process used to make charcoal of heating feedstocks in a closed retort with no oxygen until they ‘crack’ and turn into vapour. This vapour can then be burnt directly as a fuel, or it can be cooled to produced a usable gas similar to Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG).
Mr. Leigh Ramsey, Director of Nufuels Ltd presented on the technology which was piloted in Solomon Islands in 2018 by Nufuels Ltd, with funding support from the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand.
“The process used by pyrolysis technology is not incineration or burning,” he said.
“The pilot project in Solomon Islands focused on plastics processing. The good thing about this technology is that it can take plastic waste that is picked up from the streets, it does not have to be clean plastics,” Mr. Ramsey said. “Marine plastics can also be used, but these need to be washed first to remove salts.”
According to Mr. Ramsey, 10kgs of plastics can produce approximately 3kgs of LPG gas, and 7kgs of crude oil for burner fuel.
Mr. Lindsay Teobasi, General Manager of Design & Technology Centre Solomon Islands spoke on the results of this project within the communities that were identified as test sites.
“Our main objectives for this project were to reduce the amount of plastic waste in Honiara and to provide employment and training opportunities for all,” Mr. Teobasi said.
“Through the use of pyrolysis technology, we also wanted to provide solutions for the growing economic and ecologic concerns, specifically energy security, waste management, and a transition to a low emissions future. In addition, we wanted to capitalise on this unique process to divert waste from the landfill for further processing,” he added.
Three sites were selected for trial operations in 2019. They have carried out training within these communities on how to use the pyrolysis system, and also carried out awareness for communities living near rivers on the dangers of discarding plastic bottles and other plastic waste directly into the rivers.
These communities have been able to use the pyrolysis system to create gas that can be used for cooking and baking. Education and trainings that have been carried out in communities have been gender inclusive, with women being taught how to use the system. Mr. Teobasi observed the excitement and joy observed in the women who attend the training, and are then able to use this technology in their day-to-day lives.
While the pyrolysis technology has been introduced at the household levels in Solomon Islands, in Vanuatu it is being used at the business scale.
Mr. Andrew Bohn, Chief Executive Officer of Ocean Environment Solutions in Vanuatu, shared plans to set up a pyrolysis plant in Vanuatu that will be able to process waste to energy at a larger scale.
Another type of waste-to-energy technology – biogas technology – was also highlighted. Biogas technologies uses anaerobic technology – where organic matter is broken down into methane gas and other gases through a series of biochemical processes – to produce biogas, which can be used for a variety of purposes.
A biogas project in Funafuti, Tuvalu funded by the United States Government in 2023 was used as a success story to show how biogas can benefit families and communities in the Pacific while also addressing the issue of waste. This project installed 20 home biogas systems on Funafuti atoll, and resulting in the reduction of 129 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide annually.
Families who were beneficiaries of the biogas systems now save between AUD $80 – AUD $85 per month on energy costs by using biogas for cooking.
The Port Vila Central Market also has a biogas system which provides biogas for vendors who have food stalls at the market. The biogas produced by the system powers their burners which is used to prepare food for the general public.
For more information, please contact Ms. Julie Pillet, Sustainable Waste Actions in the Pacific Project Manager, at [email protected].