Biowaste Study Visits in Barcelona

The EU countries are obliged to separately collect biowaste by the end of 2023 (Directive 2018/851, Article 22). CITISYSTEM – Supporting cities in sustainable biobased systemic change project intends to promote the circulation of biowaste and other bioresources in cities (Interreg Europe 2023). In October 2023, CERCA Research Centres of Catalonia hosted the 2nd CITISYSTEM interregional meeting in Barcelona. The first day was dedicated to study visits, followed by a project meeting at the Ministry of Research and Universities, where partners and stakeholders discussed policy development and shared good practices from their regions.

Link to the website of CITISYSTEM.

A photo from indoors of an industrial site. There are many belts and sorting machines. On the left bottom, there are packages of pressed recyclable materials. — Picture 1. Overview of the mechanical separation at Ecoparc de Barcelona during the guided tour. The separated recyclable items (paper, glass, and plastics) are packaged and delivered to the appropriate recycling facilities. (Photo: Katerina Medkova)

Focusing on biowaste in Barcelona

The first study visit was held in the Ecoparc de Barcelona, a complex waste recovery treatment plant in the Barcelona metropolitan area. It focuses on the valorization of the organic fractions and other recoverable materials from the unseparated mixed waste (grey bin). The mechanical-biological treatment plant receives 675 tons of municipal solid waste a day (Ecoparc Barcelona 2021).

After the waste from grey bins is received at Ecoparc, waste passes through multiple sorting machines that separate organic waste from non-organic waste and recyclable items are also recovered. The mechanical separation is assured by various sieves that separate items by size, shape, and weight: optical separators and electromagnets. Larger objects are manually separated. (Gargallo 2023.)

The separated organic waste undergoes a biological treatment, in which microorganisms decompose the residual organic matter and produce biogas (Gargallo 2023). Biogas is utilized to generate over 26 900 MWh of electricity, which equals to 3000 families’ yearly electricity consumption (Ecoparc Barcelona 2021).

The rejected waste is received in the nearby waste-to-energy plant to produce over 127 900 tons of steam for district heating and over 181 900 MWh of electricity (data from 2022) (Gargallo 2023).

Two photos from indoors. On the left, there is a group of people in yellow safety vest and helmets. On the right, there is a view on an industrial sorting plant with many conveyors with different kinds of materials/waste. — Picture 2: Inviting related stakeholders to CITISYSTEM interregional events is part of the learning and knowledge sharing process. (Left picture) This time, the stakeholders from Lahti, Finland were Kimmo Rinne (the second from right) from Salpakierto, a waste management company and Niko Wasseholm (the first from right) from LABIO, a biogas and composting plant. (Right picture) The rejected waste is transported by conveyors directly to the nearby waste-to-energy plant. (Photo: Katerina Medkova)

The second visit led to biowaste recovery plant in Vallès Oriental outside Barcelona. Since 2005, Serveis Ambientals del Vallès Oriental, SA. has provided biowaste management in the Vallès Oriental and Maresme counties located northeast of the Barcelona province. The public company serves about 900 000 citizens and currently collects 52 000 tons of biowaste a year. As a result, 4.5 MNm³ of biogas and 6 000 tons of compost are produced annually. (Abad 2023.)

A group of people in yellow safety vests standing outdoors in front of a big whitish biogas storage tank. — Picture 3. The CITISYSTEM project partners and stakeholders are visiting the biowaste recovery plant in Vallès Oriental. The Director Vanesa Abad (on the very left) explained that the new plant is under construction and should be in full operation in 2025. The new plant will be also equipped with PV panels with a capacity of 1,7 GWh a year. (Photo: Vanessa Abad)

Due to the expected increase in the volume of organic matter (annual growth 1.3%-1,5%), an expansion of the plant was needed. The new plant’s capacity would grow twofold to 100 000 tons a year. Simultaneously, the compost and biogas production will increase to 10 000 tons per year and 11,6 MNm³respectively. The facility will produce upgraded biomethane for transportation or supply in a grid, electricity, and thermal energy for its own processes (digesters, drying, sanitation). (Abad 2023.)

The collection system of biowaste differs, and the door-to-door collection proved to be the most efficient in terms of the number of impurities, leading to a high-quality class-A compost (Abad 2023).

Author

Katerina Medkova works as an RDI Specialist at LAB University of Applied Sciences and is CITISYSTEM Project Manager.

References

Abad, V. 2023. Visit 2: Waste Management Consortium of the Valles Orien. Presentation given at the CITISYSTEM study visit at Vallès Oriental on 8 Nov 2023.

Directive (EU) 2018/851 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 amending Directive 2008/98/EC on waste, EUR-lex. Cited 20 Nov 2023. Available at http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2018/851/oj

Ecoparc Barcelona. 2021. Qué hacemos. Cited 19 Nov 2023. Available at https://ecoparcbcn.com/que-hacemos/

Gargallo, G. 2023. Mechanical Biological Training Plant & Energy Recovery Plant. Presentation given at the CITISYSTEM study visit at Ecoparc de Barcelona on 8 Nov 2023.

Interreg Europe. 2023. CITISYSTEM – Supporting cities in sustainable biobased systemic change. Cited 19 Nov 2023. Available at https://www.interregeurope.eu/citisystem

Links

Link 1. Interreg Europe. 2023. Project Summary. CITISYSTEM. Cited 19 Nov 2023. Available at https://www.interregeurope.eu/citisystem