Fostering renewable energy provision from manure in Germany – Where to implement GHG emission reduction incentives

Oehmichen, Katja; Thrän, Daniela

doi:10.1016/j.enpol.2017.08.014

Cited by 27 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…The production of biogas from energy crops and manure via anaerobic digestion holds great GHG emission-saving potentials when biogas replaces fossil fuels. The use of bioenergy thus supports the decarbonisation of the energy and agricultural sector [17]. However, in addition to these desirable effects, biogas production and utilisation are often associated with risks to other aspects of sustainability, such as increasing competition with other land uses, or effects on ecosystems as well as local noise and odour.…”

Section: Sustainability Governance Of the Biogas Sector In Germanymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Manure-based biogas systems in agricultural environment are able to save GHG emissions compared with open storage of manure and no production of renewable power. The resulting GHG emission savings from manure-based biogas systems are thus of a comparable size in the agriculture (manure treatment) and energy sector (substitution of fossil power) [17]. The size of individual livestock farms and related manure availability is a limiting factor for manure processing into biogas.…”

Section: Contribution Of Biogas To the Other Sustainability Dimensionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Governance of sustainability in the German biogas sector—adaptive management of the Renewable Energy Act between agriculture and the energy sector

et al. 2020

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Biomass is an integral part of the energy system being not only used in the chemical industry, but also as a basic raw material for the bio-economy sector, which is promoted worldwide. However, its potential can only be exploited sustainably if biomass is cultivated and governed appropriately. Consequently, governance systems are needed to ensure sustainability throughout the bioenergy value chain to maximise the benefits and minimise possible negative impacts. This study investigates how sustainability is put into effect in the German biogas market, the largest biogas market worldwide. The development of Germany's biogas market is described according to the structure of a four-phase market model of Heuss: the introduction, expansion, maturing, and stagnation phase. Within each of these market phases, the most important German legislation for development of the biogas market was analysed, namely the Renewable Energy Act and legislation addressing associated sustainability issues. The development of the biogas market was controlled and steered by the adaptive Renewable Energy Act, particularly by incentivising cultivation of energy crops. Efforts to promote sustainability started during the transition from market expansion to market consolidation. The effects of these efforts on greenhouse gas emission reductions have been monitored and reported for more than 15 years, but assessment of other aspects of sustainability has varied. In general, legislation regulating the agriculture sector was changed to address new sustainability concerns with some delay. Sustainable development of the agricultural biogas market requires elements of governance, including adaptive legislation within the energy sector as well as monitoring and regular reporting of environmental impacts and related developments in areas of the agriculture sector, such as meat production. Rapid growth of capacity in the biogas sector combined with a significant increase in meat production, dependent on increased fodder production, created risks to sustainability. It can be concluded that the sustainable development of biogas requires additional instruments, possibly national regulation, in addition to legislation applied to the broader agricultural sector.

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Section: Sustainability Governance Of the Biogas Sector In Germanymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Contribution Of Biogas To the Other Sustainability Dimensionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Governance of sustainability in the German biogas sector—adaptive management of the Renewable Energy Act between agriculture and the energy sector

et al. 2020

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“…Germany is one of the top ten global producers concerning pig and cattle meat ( Table 3). It was estimated that 139 million tons of manure are produced each year [48] and this large amount increases the risk of uncontrolled nutrient loss into the environment [49] . There are a few possible ways to resolve this problem and produce valuable products at the same time; one of them is the production biogas from manure [50] .…”

Section: Germanymentioning

confidence: 99%

The current phosphate recycling situation in China and Germany: a comparative review

Xue¹,

He²,

Sachs³

et al. 2019

Front. Agr. Sci. Eng.

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Phosphorus (P) is an indispensable element for organisms but the primary source of P-mineral phosphate resources-are non-renewable. Agricultural production has a high demand for fossil phosphate resources, but the resulting phosphate-rich residues are lack of management. This leads to rapid reserves depletion and severe phosphate pollution risks. One sustainable way is to reuse the phosphate dispersed in various residues such as sewage sludge and livestock manure. Diverse techniques have emerged to recover phosphate from wastes to close the phosphate cycle. While it is a global issue, the regional situations regarding potential phosphate scarcity and its management differ strongly. China is rich in phosphate resources, but over-exploitation has greatly increased the risk of phosphate rocks depletion, while in Germany the P resources depend on imports, but there is commitment to keep a balance between import and utilization. This had led to great differences in the way the two countries deal with the "re-use" of phosphate in waste. China is now in a transition phase from the simple terminal pollution control to "waste" reuse and nutrient resources recycling. One sign of this tendency is the mandatory garbage classification and preparation for further processing and recycling. This was first implemented in Shanghai in 2019, whereas Germany has been following the legal framework for waste management since the 19th century. There are a series of laws to control the nutrient loss from municipal and agricultural activities, as for instance with sewage sludge ordinance and fertilizer legislation. Many of these laws have been newly revised recently. Sewage sludge cannot be directly utilized on farmland as organic fertilizer any more. Alternatively, phosphate and other nutrients should be recovered from sewage sludge. Advanced phosphate recovery technologies and related nutrient recycling schemes are proceeding. This review summarizes the current situation of phosphate-containing residues management and phosphate reuse in China and Germany. The state legislation and policies, which would affect the phosphate recycling concept are presented as well. As there are various kinds of phosphate-containing residues, different phosphate recovery technologies can be applied. Those technologies are discussed from their mechanism and suitability.

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“…Treating animal manures in biogas is advantageous over direct use as a fertilizer due to the reduction of emissions from storage and additional energy gain [229][230][231]. To exploit these unused potentials should therefore be a priority.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…First and foremost, life cycle assessments often rely on rated general parameters, such as the globally applicable emission factors from [230,232,240,241]. However, measured emissions can differ substantially from earlier assumptions and also vary by an order of magnitude [242].…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Future Agricultural Biogas Plant in Germany: A Vision

et al. 2019

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After nearly two decades of subsidized and energy crop-oriented development, agricultural biogas production in Germany is standing at a crossroads. Fundamental challenges need to be met. In this article we sketch a vision of a future agricultural biogas plant that is an integral part of the circular bioeconomy and works mainly on the base of residues. It is flexible with regard to feedstocks, digester operation, microbial communities and biogas output. It is modular in design and its operation is knowledge-based, information-driven and largely automated. It will be competitive with fossil energies and other renewable energies, profitable for farmers and plant operators and favorable for the national economy. In this paper we discuss the required contribution of research to achieve these aims.

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Fostering renewable energy provision from manure in Germany – Where to implement GHG emission reduction incentives

Cited by 27 publications

References 6 publications

Governance of sustainability in the German biogas sector—adaptive management of the Renewable Energy Act between agriculture and the energy sector

Governance of sustainability in the German biogas sector—adaptive management of the Renewable Energy Act between agriculture and the energy sector

The current phosphate recycling situation in China and Germany: a comparative review

The Future Agricultural Biogas Plant in Germany: A Vision

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