Sustainable raw material supply

1. Sustainable raw material supply for the Production of Biomethane London 16/12/2015 Kristin Sternberg www.fnr.de

2. Agency for Renewable Resources (FNR) Introduction:

3. FNRFacts and Tasks

5. English Website: international.fnr.de

6. Sustainable Raw Material Supply for the Production of Biomethane - Approaches in different countries -

7. Sustainable Raw Material Supply for the Production of Biomethane BIOSURFassesses and evaluates: Availability and potential of sustainable feedstocks National sustainability criteria & indicators, incl. a benchmark and gap analysis And produces „Guidelines for biomethane value chain evaluation“

8. Selected sustainable raw material categories Animal waste • manure and slurry Other waste materials • municipal bio-waste from households and catering, and food and feed industry residues Residues from Agriculture & Landscape Maintenance • by-products from agriculture like straw, grass from landscape maintenance Agricultural crops • dedicated energy crops, catch cops

9. Definition of sustainable feedstocks • Main sustainability criteria: GHG emissions, competition for land (for food/feed, other energy of material purposes), nature conservation, biodiversity • Broad consensus: increased use of waste and residue materials; additional potentials must be used => there are/ there will be further incentives to support this development; catch crops have to be included • Use of dedicated energy crops is seen much more critical; still ongoing controversial debates about their use in the AD sector => still unclear if the significant potential energy crops offer for the biogas sector will actually be utilised (need for adapted regulatory framework)

10. A considerable increase of biogas based energy supply is only possible when energy crops are included in the feedstock portfolio • The additional energy-related contribution by waste and residue materials is relatively low compared to the possible (sustainable) contributions by energy crops • Main advantages of energy crops: • Particularly for maize: Highest land/energy/cost efficiency per unit biogas • In substrate mixes with slurry, it helps to (economically) unlock further potentials/ make the process more efficient

11. Definition of sustainable feedstocks • Optimisation of farm management (if Cross Compliance/ Best Practice measures are respected – “alternative” energy plants/ catch crops included ) • Energy crops are/ can be part of a sound crop rotation management • Pressure on available agricultural area grows => ILUC factors must be considered on a global level; so far specific calculations for the biogas/ biomethane sector are not scientifically reliable • Regional problems: high density of lifestock farming and biogas plants/ high concentration of energy crop cultivation => need for official limits?!

12. Use of substrates for Biogas-PlantsComparison France - Germany • Bonus for slurry use in France • As off 2015, use of energy crops will be forbidden for certain plants

13. Biomass potential for biogas production in France in 2030 (ADEME, 2013)

14. Biomass potential for biogas production in Germany (German Biogas Association)

15. Biomass potential for biogas production in UK (Renewable Energy Association)

16. Q&A Discussion Workshop - Sustainable Raw Material Supply for the Production of Biomethane

17. Guiding questions • Use of feedstocks • How is the substrate mix in your plant? (field reports) • Is the focus rather on local availability (related to climate and soil quality/ availability of waste and residue material) or on external drivers (e.g. feed in tariffs that promote use of specific substrates) • Availability & Potentials of feedstocks • How is the availability of the discussed sustainable feedstocks? • Do you agree with presented figures – particularly on the outlooks • Discussionabout optimisation of sustainable feedstock use/ supply • Challenges related to use of wastes/ residues and energy crops in biogas plants => need for regulatory changes • What role does sustainability play in daily operations of biogas plants/ national politics • Need for action regarding sustainable feedstock supply/ political framework • Which outcomes do you expect from this project

18. Thank you for your attention! Fachagentur Nachwachsende Rohstoffe e.V. (FNR) Hofplatz 1 18276 Gülzow-Prüzen info@fnr.de www.fnr.de www.international.fnr.de k.sternberg@fnr.de

19. Availability • Is there enough information concerning the availability of all raw material categories? • How do you obtain information about biomass availability? • At what level of detail are data sets available? • At what geographical level are data of interest for you and what for (e.g. planning, political consultancy)? • Is there information available about the location and capacity of animal husbandries? For example in Serbia the Ministry of Agriculture collects such data from a certain farm size on. • How does the “EU-Waste Framework Directive” influence the future amount and availability of biowaste? • Are there any efforts visible regarding the development of a circular economy? • How are catch crops integrated in the English farming system? • How do climate conditions affect their availability? • Is there any information about straw availability or usable material from landscape maintenance?

20. Uses • How is the general substrate mix for biogas plants in England? (field reports) • Is the focus rather on local availability (related to climate and soil quality) or on external drivers (e.g. feed in tariffs that promote use of plants with highest biogas production) • What are the competing uses for biomethane production? • Do urgent Disposal problems exist? • Does a monitoring of biomass potentials, current plants and the used feedstock exist or is it planned? • Do you expect a change from current landfilling, incineration and composting of biowaste to digesting? • Topics which could be additional drivers for that? • Are catch crops used in biomethane production at a significant rate? If yes or no, why and which ones? • Is straw used in biomethane production at a significant rate? If yes or no, why?

21. Discussion • What are challenges related to the use of the raw material categories for biogas/biomethane production? • Does any raw material category has a high potential of conflict because of competing uses? • Separate collection of biowaste? • How can we avoid impurities in biowaste streams • How could the use of digestates have an impact on yields and soil fertility? • What are measures to avoid soil erosion, increase yields and soil fertility? • Do you consider a limit of 175 kg N for digestate useful as it is European law for farm fertiliser? • Is the use of straw for biomethane production a problem for yields and soil fertility? • Is the use of catch crops for biomethane production a problem for yields and soil fertility? • Need for actions: what needs to be done to overcome the challenges related to the sustainable use of feedstocks for biomethane production?