Biogas From Human Sewage: Global Warming

Can Biogas From Human Sewage Play a Significant Role in Getting Us Out of Global Warming? Name Institution Can Biogas From Human Sewage Play a Significant Role in Getting Us Out of Global Warming? Introduction When organic matter breaks down without the presence of oxygen, the process results into a mixture of gases that are referred to as biogas. This biogas is an energy gas that is made up of methane as its primary component. The organic matter can be in form of slurry from sewages, agricultural wastes, food wastes, plant materials, green waste, manure, or municipal wastes. Since the resources that it is obtained from are replenished naturally, biogas is therefore a renewable energy source. Compared to other energy sources and fuels such as the fossil fuels, biogas is also considered the cleanest and is expected to replace other fuels in the near future especially in Sweden. Ideally, the process of biogas production is economical and beneficial to society since it makes it possible for most of the organic wastes generated to be reused in a more resourceful manner. Biogas obtained from human sewage plays a big role in reducing global warming in a number of ways. For one, it is renewable and clean, meaning that it is also non-polluting to the environment in terms of emitting very low greenhouse gases. The generation of biogas also reduces the pollution of water and soil that would otherwise be in bad condition with toxic substances which would cause climate change. Organic fertilizer is obtained from biogas generation and this therefore saves the environment from the toxic chemical fertilizers. All the mentioned factors indicate that indeed biogas from human sewage plays a big role when it comes to reducing global warming. This paper discusses the factors that push investments into biogas as a renewable energy, the cost of such investments, and the examples of wastewater treatment plants that help in the generation of biogas. Drivers for Investments, Benefits, Regulations and Future Investments One of the leading reasons for investing in biogas is the need to reduce and stop pollution due to greenhouse gases emissions. According to a report by IEA Bioenergy (IEA, 2018), the transition from using fossil fuels to biogas or bioenergy was necessitated by the fact that the latter plays an important role of reducing the amount of the harmful greenhouse gases that are emitted and released into the atmosphere. Ideally, biogas generation achieves this by providing means that human sewage and other wastes can be treated and managed (Plugge 2017). This role is important in most other areas where these wastes are not treated and managed through digestion, they pile up into mountains on landfill sites where the process of decomposition takes place and eventually leads to methane gas to be released. Notably, this methane contributes massively to global warming when compared to carbon dioxide.[IEA Bioenergy. The Role of Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas in the Circular Economy] The other driver of the renewable energy investment is the anticipated adverse climate change with its impacts and associated risks. According to a report by IPCC (2018), roughly 1.0 degrees Celsius of global warming is due to human activities. Notably, the transport sector account for a bigger percentage of this increase in global warming because of the excess carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide gases that are emitted by the vehicles and which are released directly to the atmosphere. These gasses are referred to as anthropogenic greenhouse gases. Presently, most of these emissions are still in the atmosphere while part of them has been released into the ocean and land (Synthesis Report 2014). The result of this is the acidification of the ocean and the temperatures have gone up to exaggerated levels that affect life on earth too. The high temperatures have caused the water levels to go down thereby promoting conditions such as extreme droughts, floods, forest fires and cyclones. Consequently, these changes in climate have led to the loss of some species while others have become extinct. For example, the amount of fish caught in oceans and other major water bodies has decreased significantly over the past years. With the change in climate, human health is also expected to be affected by an increase in health problems. For instance, the extreme temperatures are associated with increasing the cases of skin cancer (Bharath & Turner 2009). Similarly, diseases such as dengue fever and malaria are also expected to increase in their frequency and geographical range (IPCC 2018). Apart from affecting aquatic life and human health, the changes in climate will also impact the agricultural sector. In this case, it is anticipated that the projected food availability will reduce even further in the near future due to the high temperatures. In this case, the yields of cereal crops such as wheat, rice, and maize will be the most affected.[Bharath & Turner 2009: Impact of Climate Change on Skin Cancer. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine,] [IPCC Global Warming of 1.5 degrees Celsius] Aside from reducing pollution and helping to reduce climate change, some other economic benefits act as drivers for investing in renewable energy and biogas in particular. To begin with, biogas use is associated with improved air quality. This is largely because biogas has lower carbon dioxide and methane emissions compared to other energy sources. In addition, biogas production process reduces the mountains of wastes on land, which usually cause unpleasant odors. As a fuel, biogas will also help people save much that would otherwise be used to buy firewood or charcoal for cooking (Amare 2015). With biogas also, the plant nutrients are improved in their value while at the same time they have an increased efficiency of being absorbed in the soil. This renewable energy provides increased employment opportunities to people who are required to work in the production plants both on small and large scale. Aside from the mentioned, biogas also provides security of supply since the raw materials and resources needed for energy production are always readily available. In this case, these include the human sewage and other wastes that can be obtained readily from households or sewages. The recycling process implies that resources can be retained and reused in a way that benefits the economy of the society. In terms of business, the economy of Sweden as a producer of biogas is bound to improve in terms of its GDP. Notably, the GDP is expected to improve from SEK 4billion every year to about SEK 14 billion per year (IEA Bioenergy 2014). With increased biogas production, it means that the country will have increased development in technology while also having more opportunities to export the same to other countries.[IEA Bioenergy 2014] There are some proposed regulations which when implemented at the national, regional and municipal levels can greatly encourage the investment in biogas. For instance at the national level, the government in Sweden has the role of ensuring that the Swedish biogas and that which is imported compete on equal terms in order to promote its own production industry. In addition, the conditions set for biogas should be competitive, stable and able to apply on long-term basis. The regulatory framework concerning renewable electricity generated from biogas needs to be changed such that green electricity certificates are issued for this type of electricity especially when it is distributed through the same gas grids as the natural gas. Providing tax deductions on pressurized biogas energy and green electricity will equally favor investments in biogas. Aside from this, the government also has to ensure that new biogas plants have a clear criterion regarding the process of acquiring of permits. A technology investment fund needs to be set up to ensure that shipping has less climatic and environmental effects. At the state level, the agencies responsible for protecting Swedish energy and environment can encourage investments through ensuring that electricity obtained from biogas receives electricity certification. The protection agencies can also give official information to the local and international organizations and companies concerning the benefits of biogas both to the environment and to the economy. Lastly, the municipal can also make regulations in relation to the issue in two main ways. The first regulation is ensuring that three environmental zones are introduced as per the national regulations regarding the urban environments. Secondly, in the process of procuring the documents on biogas the municipal has to ensure that a socio-economic perspective that is broader in approach is applied. All these regulations may favor the investment in biogas. Closely related to the government, state and municipal regulations, there are financial support systems provided by the Swedish government to increase biogas use and investment in the same. For instance, until the end of the year 2015 no taxes were imposed on biogas relating to carbon dioxide and energy whereas the same were imposed on petrol and diesel. The income tax for companies dealing with biogas production was reduced by about 40 percent (IEA Bioenergy 2014). There is great potential for developing countries to invest in W...