Livestock contribute to World Bank biogas project in - leatherbiz: Lea Leatherbiz

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Livestock contribute to World Bank biogas project in rural China

16/04/2015
A project to provide clean, renewable energy to rural communities in China has won the approval of the World Bank and will run, initially, from 2015 until 2020. The initiative, the Hebei Rural Renewable Energy Development Project, presents another example of the the livestock industry’s ability to offset its own carbon emissions.

Almost 100,000 rural households in China’s Hebei province will benefit from the project, gaining access to clean, easy-to-use biogas for cooking, with help from a $71.5 million loan from the World Bank. The money will go towards the installation and operation of six biogas facilities, which will convert livestock manure and crop residue to biogas and provide energy to local residents.

“The project is important,” the World Bank said on approving the loan in March, “because rapid agricultural development in China, while helping boost rural incomes and improve the nation’s food supply, also poses a threat to the environment and public health.”

It said livestock farms generate in Hebei generate 30.7 million tonnes of manure each year. As the new project shows, this material can be put to good use and can help offset livestock’s carbon footprint, but without proper treatment, the World Bank warns, it could also present difficulties for water quality levels and even public health.

At the same time, wheat, corn and cotton production generate 61.8 million tonnes of crop residues every year. Around two-thirds of crop waste is used as fertiliser or animal feed, and the rest is mainly burned in open fields or used as fuel for household cooking and heating, causing indoor and outdoor air pollution.

“The experience gained from a pilot exercise can be used for promoting effective and sustainable use of the large amounts of agricultural wastes in Hebei province and surrounding areas, and contribute to the efforts to improve air quality in the region,” said Jin Liu, the World Bank’s senior agriculture specialist and task team leader for this project.

The project is expected to produce around 42 million cubic-metres of biogas, which will be provided to 96,100 rural households as fuel for cooking. By replacing coal, the World Bank estimates it will reduce carbon emissions in the area by 58,780 tonnes every year. The remaining biogas will be upgraded and used as fuel for public transport in the region.


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