The Hindu 27.03.2013
Corporation plans power generation from waste
Rs. 1 crore biomethanation plant on the cards.
In a bid to bring down its electricity bill, the Municipal Corporation has proposed to establish a biomethanation plant to produce 400 kilowatt hour (kWh) of power from organic waste and waste water.
The project, expected to ease the short-staffed Corporation’s burden of disposing the mounting garbage in the town, is to be implemented on an outlay of Rs. 1 crore.
According to data available with the Corporation, 160 tonnes of solid waste are generated every day in the urban local body, which does not reach the garbage dumping yard at Ramaiyanpatti owing to manpower shortage.
Once the biomethanation plant is established, the electricity generated can be utilised for operating motor pumps and lighting streetlamps.
The plant uses organic waste, human excreta and waste water to generate biogas, an effective fuel for cooking or generation of electricity.Biogas is a reliable means of operating an internal combustion engine.
The spent matter is rich in nutrient and can be used as organic manure, and the odourless water for landscaping or gardening.
This plant will help prevent contamination of groundwater, and reduce pollution, a senior Corporation official claims.
Since only organic waste is used, the Corporation plans to collect five tonnes of waste from hotels, marriage halls,lodges, hospitals, slaughter houses, vegetable markets, fish and mutton stalls on a daily basis to keep the methanation plant running without interruption.
“While
a sizable portion of organic waste generated in the town can be used
for producing power, the urban local body, which will initially spend
Rs. 1 crore from its general fund, can get it back in the form of
subsidy from the government as waste is being converted into wealth,”
the official says.
