Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association comments on Spring Budget

Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association comments on Spring Budget

The Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association (ADBA) has issued the following response, by its chairman Chris Huhne, to the Spring Budget presented today by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt:

“For renewables and net zero, this is a never-never budget of far-off promises that fails to deliver on immediate and available home-grown solutions like green gas and onshore wind.

“Instead, the Government focusses predominantly on nuclear even though no new plants could be built now to have any impact on 2030 targets, even if the sector could deliver on time and on budget. By contrast, new biogas plants can be built in two years cutting emissions and improving energy security.”

Anaerobic digestion is a technology that treats organic wastes such as food waste, manure and sewage to generate biogas and biomethane for heating, electricity, and transport; biofertilisers for farming and to improve soil health; and bioCO2 for use in the food and drink sector.

The biogas currently generated by over 700 plants in the UK equals 42% of the volume of gas produced by the nuclear industry. Fully deployed, it could reduce the UK’s annual greenhouse gas emissions by 6% by 2030.

-ENDS-

For further information, contact:
Jocelyne Bia, Senior Communications Consultant
e: Jocelyne.bia@adbioresources.org ; tel: 00 44 (0)20 3176 0592

Notes to editors

• The Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association (ADBA) is the trade association for the UK anaerobic digestion (AD) and biogas industry. ADBA’s vision is to see the full potential of the UK AD industry realised so it can help the UK achieve its emissions targets and other policy goals, creating a truly circular economy. www.adbioresources.org
• About the AD industry
  • There are currently 702 AD plants operational in the UK.
  • The entire industry digests approximately 46 million tonnes of organic material each year – organic material that would otherwise emit greenhouse gas if left untreated in landfill.
  • An estimated 19.6 TWh of biogas is produced each year by the AD industry – this green gas is either used to generate electricity and heat via a combined heat and power (CHP) unit or upgraded to biomethane and injected directly into the national gas grid. This is enough to heat 1.5 million UK homes.
  • The industry currently delivers 1% greenhouse gas savings in the UK every year.
  • An estimated 4,800 people are currently employed in the AD and biogas industry in the UK.
  • Fully deployed, by 2030, the UK AD and biogas industry expected to:
    • create 30,000 direct and 30,000 indirect jobs.
    • save the UK 27m t of CO2 equivalent = taking 1/3rd of all cars off the road, by 2030.
    • heat 4.5-6.4 million UK homes with the 8 billion m3 of biomethane generated.
• How AD works
  Anaerobic digestion (AD) is the natural breakdown of organic matter when deprived of oxygen in a container called digester. The process produces biogas and a residue called digestate – a stable, nutrient-rich substance used as a biofertiliser which restores soil health.