Alternative energy: Harnessing biogas

The process is feasible for small holders of livestock.

KARACHI: We are living in an era of energy shortage. At a time of increased prices, rising inflation, diminishing resources and intense global demand for energy, we need to have options and must continue to research ways to meet challenges. Renewable energy technology is definitely one option that the country must look into closely.

Gone are the days of cheap labour and resources to maintain a healthy standard of living, at optimum energy costs, which is why we must look into the depth of the energy crisis and identify solutions.

Biogas is a natural resource, abundantly found in forests, organic industrial waste along with human and animal waste. It can be recycled to produce efficient and usable energy.

By converting animal waste into methane bio-gas, hundreds of cows can generate over hundred billion kilowatts of energy, enough to power millions of homes across the country. One cow alone can produce enough waste in one day to generate 3 kilowatt hours of electricity whereas only 2.4 kilowatt are needed to power a single 100 watt bulb for the day.

Moreover, converting waste to biogas leads to a decrease of global warming gases by 4%. Major benefits have been attained by many developing nations. In China, over 30 million households have applied biogas alternative energy, leading to reduced air and water pollution, saving money, improving hygiene conditions, producing high quality fertiliser, saving cooking time, saving time collecting firewood, using crop residue for animal fodder instead of fuel and improving rural standards of living.

In Texas, cow manure is being used to power ethanol power plants, where plants are saving almost 1,000 barrels of imported oil by switching to methane bio-gas. UK has introduced this concept recently in 2010, as many countries look inwards towards generation of energy through the agricultural sector.

Today biogas is running diesel engines, gas generators, kitchen ovens, geysers and other utilities in Pakistan. This process is feasible for small holders, with livestock producing 50kg waste per day, produced by three cows.

According to the World Energy Council, Pakistan started a biogas scheme in 1974 and commissioned 4.137 biogas units by 1987. These were biogas plants (small scale) with a capacity varying from 5 to 158 cubic metres gas production per day. Unfortunately, lack of funding resulted in early termination of the projects.

Till 2006, the government helped fund over 1,600 household biogas. By 2008, another 2,500 plants were installed after realisation of the importance of biogas came through following a study conducted in 2007.

The outcome of the study further revealed that Pakistan has one of largest unexploited biogas resources in the region with an estimated potential of over 5 million biogas digesters in the country, with the most optimum climate and temperature conditions, specially in areas of northern Punjab. At the grass root levels, over 6,000 digesters were installed all over the country, leading to the popularity of this method as a long-term viable solution. The credit goes to the PCRET – Pakistan Center for Renewable Energy who led efforts to boost this alternative.

In Pakistan, the initiative by the NGO called Initiative for Rural and Sustainable Development (IRSD) led to the installation of over 150 biogas plants with support from the UNDP small grants programme. Another NGO “Koshish” in Sialkot, Punjab has helped villagers set up 200 biogas plants successfully.

There is definitely a need in our country to improve conditions to let biogas production flourish.

The government needs to proactively assist by providing subsidies to build efficient biogas plants and by reworking the energy conservation bill, which is aimed at replacing old equipment and machinery to the rural farming communities with new technological gadgets. Banks and leasing companies should also venture into this market through microfinance schemes with an objective to create a more robust agricultural system, with abundant water resources and food for the cattle and livestock.

We must build the resolve to think on the way forward to find more natural means of energy conservation and optimum energy production for our potential future to remain a prosperous one.

THE WRITER IS A BANKER AND BROADCASTER FOR FM91

Published in The Express Tribune, September 3^rd, 2012.