South Africa: Durban Municipal Solid Waste
2 Project Documents
|
Mariannhill landfill gas recovery and flaring station (Photo: World Bank) |
In May 2003, the PCF and eThekwini Municipality (the enlarged Durban metropolitan municipality) agreed on the terms and conditions of the first carbon purchase transaction in South Africa under which (pending the clearance of the Social and Environmental Impact Assessments being undertaken in parallel by the Province of KwaZulu-Natal and the World Bank) the PCF agreed to purchase emission reductions from the Durban Landfill Gas to Energy Project in eThekwini Municipality, the Republic of South Africa .
The Durban Landfill Gas to Energy project consists of an enhanced collection of landfill gas at three landfill sites in eThekwini Municipality and the use of some of the recovered gas to produce electricity. The electricity produced will be fed into the municipal grid and replace electricity that the municipal electricity company is buying from other suppliers. Currently, the Mariannhill and the Bisasar Road landfills collect and flare a portion of the methane generated for local, site-specific reasons. The third landfill site, La Mercy, which is located far away from residential areas, only has passive venting in place to ensure that the concentration of landfill gas does not reach hazardous levels. The proposed project will substantially upgrade the current low efficiency of the partial collection system currently in place, rising to about 80% collection efficiency at the peak in 2012, and then progressively dropping over the long-term.
The PCF will purchase 3.8 million tons of Carbon Dioxide equivalent (CO2e) from the project at a price of US$3.75 per t/CO2e . An additional 20 cents per t/CO2e will be paid into a Carbon Credit Community Fund, to be designed in consultation with the local communities. This payment is conditional upon approval of the design and implementation of the Community Fund.
The project will be implemented by Durban Solid Waste (DSW) which is the municipal solid waste department of eThekwini Municipality. The electricity produced from the landfill gas will be sold to the municipal electricity department, eThekwini Electricity. Power purchase discussions have been initiated between DSW and eThekwini Electricity with no technical hurdles identified. eThekwini Electricity purchases its electricity primarily from Eskom, the national electricity utility company.
The proposed project comprises the installation of approximately 180 production wells for landfill gas extraction at the three landfill sites. While some of the wells will be put in place at project start, other wells will be added later on as the landfills’ working surface expands. Adequate flare capacity would also be installed while waiting on engine-generator delivery and installation. Also, with the exhaustion of older wells new wells have to be added to ensure a sufficient amount of gas for electricity production. The wells will be spread throughout the whole landfill site and be located especially at the deepest parts of the landfills where the greatest amount of methane can be expected. Besides the gas extraction purpose, the wells will also be equipped for leachate removal. The project further involves the installation of a total capacity of around 10 MW gas-fired electricity generators (spark-ignition piston engine generators) over time, which will be located in units of 1 MW at all three sites. At an 85% annual capacity factor a maximum of 74.5 GWh per year will be delivered to the grid.
|
A fence along the perimeter of the landfill site to contain wind blown debris (Photo: World Bank) |
Article 12 of the Kyoto Protocol requires that a CDM project activity contribute to the sustainable development of the host country. Assessing the project’s side effects on the local environment and communities is thus a key element for each CDM project. In addition, the PCF attempts to ensure that all landfill gas projects it participates in have an electricity generation component, thereby ensuring a productive use of methane, providing another benefit to the country in addition to revenue generation from the capture of landfill gas through flaring. At the same time, the PCF ensures through its technical, environmental, and social due diligence process that the proposed CDM activity does not stand in the way of any legitimate local social or environmental action by stakeholders.
The Durban Landfill Gas to Energy project has positive effects on local air and groundwater quality and safety. By displacing electricity from the grid the project reduces emissions related to coal-fired power production which include sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides and particulates. It also reduces the adverse impacts related to transportation of coal and coal-mining (dust and acid mine drainage). Near the landfill sites the project improves local air quality by further reducing the amount of landfill gas released into the atmosphere and thus reducing the risk of dangerous methane gas concentrations and of exposure of neighboring residents to odor. This is particularly relevant for the Bisasar Road and the Mariannhill landfill sites which are located close to residential areas. All gas capturing wells to be installed will be equipped for leachate removal which contributes to the protection of groundwater.
With regard to local employment the project will result in a small increase in the area of skilled jobs for operation and maintenance of the equipment at the landfill and the power generation units.
The PCF will be making an additional payment to support community programs for stakeholders. Stakeholders living near the landfills or involved in waste collection will be invited to participate in selecting a program or programs, in conjunction with eThekwini Municipality, that will be funded through an additional 20 cents per t/CO2e, to be paid into a Carbon Credit Community Fund. The total amount of this direct, additional contribution is about $760,000 if the full purchase of 3.8 million t/CO2e by the PCF is made. (Some of this money could be provided up front, depending on the nature of the project or program selected). This funding is not to be provided as “compensation”, but is rather meant to ensure that those who are affected by the landfill operations which form the basis of the PCF project derive some benefit, and have the advantage of proactive outreach, from the project.
The provision of up to 10MW in electricity will provide revenues for the Municipality, and reduce local pollution from fossil-fuel plants, the generation source for most electricity at present.
The benefits provided through the CDM promote the development and expansion of sustainably managed landfills in developing countries. It also enables the inclusion of electricity generation components in methane capture projects. As the Long Run Marginal Cost of electricity increases over time, the attractiveness of such components will increase, but for now only financial support from CDM projects makes electricity generation from landfill gas financially viable.
The PCF-supported project in Durban will most likely be the first CDM project of its type in South Africa, and other cities are keen to follow its example, including Cape Town. The largely positive publicity about the proposed Durban project has also led to increased interest in the development potential of CDM-backed Landfill Gas to Energy projects throughout sub-Saharan Africa .
The World Bank as trustee of the PCF has signed the first component of the project for Mariannhill and La Mercy landfill sites. Due to the closure of the PCF portfolio, the Bank agreed with Durban Solid waste/eThekwini Municipality, that the Bisasar Road site should be released for open tender.
|
