PROPOSAL FOR REVIEW
Project Title: China: Promoting Methane Recovery and Utilization
from Mixed Municipal Refuse
GEF Focal Area: Global Warming Mitigation
GEF Eligibility [x] Eligible under financial mechanism of UNFCCC;
Date of Ratification of FCCC, January 5, 1993
Total project costs: $19,570,000
GEF Financing $5.285 million
Government In-kind Contribution to the Project
counterpart
financing of GEF
Component:
Cofinancing/ $14.28 million
Parallel financing:
Associated Project: not applicable
GEF Operational Mr. Yang Jinlin, Ministry of Finance
Focal Point
GEF Implementing UNDP
Agency:
Executing Agency: Government of China
Local Counterpart National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA)
Agency:
Estimated approval October 1996
date:
Project Duration 4 years
GEF Preparation Cost $25,000
PROMOTING METHANE RECOVERY AND UTILIZATION FROM MIXED MUNICIPAL
REFUSEBACKGROUND
- China's population has lived largely in rural areas in the
past, and its widespread use of composting techniques in agriculture
has contributed to slow growth of organic refuse. Due to China's
trend toward increasing industrialization, and accompanying urbanization,
consumption and waste production patterns are changing. Previously
80% of urban solid waste was industrial in nature, mostly coal
waste materials, and though the non-organic proportion of urban
waste remains high, an increasing percentage is now composed of
biodegradable material due to rising waste from households.
- The waste output from China's cities is currently more than
80 million tons per year, which is increasing at an annual rate
of 10%. By 1988, 6.6 billion tons of untreated solid waste had
accumulated, occupying 55,400 hectares of land. National authorities
estimate methane emissions from municipal waste to be in excess
of 1 million tons per year, which will increase as China's municipal
wastes, and their organic content, increase.
- China has little experience with comprehensive solid waste
management, or sanitary landfill practices, which currently characterize
less than 8.3% of all sites. Most of China's waste sites are
open pits located on the urban fringes, in stream or river valleys
or on 'marginal lands' such as wetlands where mixed municipal
wastes are deposited. This uncontrolled dumping has created breeding
grounds for mosquitoes, other disease spreading insects, and rats.
Ground water and drinking water aquifers are severely polluted
in these areas; odors and trace toxic gasses affect the health
of the surrounding population; and the land has been rendered
useless for other purposes. China, due to its large population,
low availability of arable land and increasing urbanization cannot,
for practical purposes, continue to pursue a land extensive, unmanaged
approach to waste disposal.
- It has been estimated that methane emissions from landfills
will rise steeply in the next few decades being one of the fastest
growing sectoral source of greenhouse gases in China. Firstly
the total amount of waste will increase in the future. China
has over fifty cities with population over 1 million official
inhabitants each. A number of these have population in excess
of 10 million (Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin). The trends of rural
to urban migration, population growth and industrialization in
China suggest, that the number and size of urban centres will
continue to grow rapidly in future, increasing the subset of cities
which could support the dissemination of methane recovery technology.
Secondly, the organic content of the waste will increase.
The third and most relevant is the issue of the Government's
commitment to waste disposal through sanitary landfills.
- In 1992, recognizing its own economic and environmental interest,
China set a goal to dispose 60% of municipal refuse in sanitary
landfills by the year 2000. Accordingly, Chapter 19 of China's
Agenda 21 Action Plan calls for the formulation of laws and regulations
governing environmentally sound management of municipal solid
waste. More recently, the National Environment Protection Agency
has elaborated the China TransCentury Green Programme to state
China's environmental investment priorities during the Ninth Five
Year Plan period (19962000). The Green Programme identifies five
key sectors for environmental investment and lists priority investment
projects to be undertaken during the plan period through support
from central, provincial and municipal government financing.
The programme of solid waste pollution control projects is the
third priority category following water and atmospheric pollution.
Within the programme 8.8 billion Chinese yuan (US$ 1 billion)
are targeted for solid waste management. Industrial solid waste
of 620 million tons per year is produced in China, while urban
domestic solid waste accounts for an additional 100 million tons.
- The proposed GEF Methane Recovery project directly supports
the solid waste management objectives outlined in the Green Programme
through the demonstration of new and energy efficient technology
in China. Control of methane emissions from the existing and
planned landfills, which is the purpose of this project, will
benefit both China and the world, since it will generate electricity
for the country and help stabilize global climate change by reducing
the release of a potent greenhouse gas (GHG). Of the available
methane, that comprises half of the gas being emitted from landfills
and dumps, a very small portion is being captured and used productively
today. Controlling methane emissions will require improved landfill
construction, and landfill gas collection and utilization, in
addition to the construction of sanitary landfills. STATE OF
PREPARATION
- Methane harvesting from solid waste landfills in industrialized
countries is a mature practice. Gas from a landfill in New York
is upgraded to pipeline quality and used to provide energy equivalent
for heating 10,000 homes in winter. The largest US waste management
firms routinely recover and use the landfill gas from all of their
sites as soon as they are closed. A large landfill located in
a canyon in Los Angeles accepts about 12,000 tons of refuse per
day. Since 1987 its landfill gas has been used to generate several
million Kwh per year of electricity in a power plant built on
site. Landfill gas recovery is actively encouraged in the US
as public policy: there has been a tax incentive in place for
several years for each unit of energy recovered, and soon gas
recovery will be mandated for certain landfills. Methane recovery
projects are being operated in many countries including Germany,
UK, Sweden, France, Denmark, Japan, Brazil, and Chile.
- While no landfill gas projects have been developed in China,
domestic researchers have in recent years studied the feasibility
of anaerobic treatment systems for a variety of municipal, industrial,
and agricultural waste products including municipal refuse. Work
has been done at the Beijing Environmental Sanitation Research
Institute, the Chengdu Organism Institute under the Chinese Academy
of Sciences, and the Organism Engineering Center in Wuhan University.
- The National Environmental Protection Agency (NEPA) feels
that to promote the practice of recovering and using landfill
gas it will be necessary to identify, analyze, recommend, and
conduct trials on methane conversion methods that are appropriate
to the variety of conditions in China. NEPA has worked closely
with the three cities interested in the proposed project and has
gained their cooperation. A GEF landfill gas expert has completed
a mission to China and has reported on the feasibility of the
project. BARRIERS TO LANDFILL GAS CAPTURE AND UTILIZATION
IN CHINA:
- There are two types of barriers to the practice of landfill
gas capture and methane gas utilization in China. The first barrier
is technological since this practice has not been attempted earlier
in China. Lack of and access to information on landfill gas recovery
technology, lack of experience of designing, construction and
operating gas recovery plants, and high costs of imported technology
are some of the technical barriers that this project will address.
The Chinese need to gain experience with pipe design, layout,
removal of moisture and non-methane components, managing surges
in gas supply, etc. The second type of barrier is institutional
management of landfill gas resource in China because of lack of
definition of institutional responsibility and resource ownership.
As in the case of coal bed methane, it is unclear as to who owns
the resource, and how the municipal, provincial and national institutions
should cooperate with private industry and the households to harvest
this resource to everyone's benefit. The formulation of specific
laws and regulations that may govern such relations are yet to
be developed fully and systematically. The current municipal
waste management systems and operational mechanism cannot meet
requirements of the market economy.
- Overcoming these two barriers are important for the viability
of the pilot plants and their successful technical and managerial
performance. Replication of these plans requires that NEPA in
coordination with equipment manufacturers and suppliers, and financiers,
take responsibility for the effective utilization of the demonstrated
processes elsewhere in the country. Profitable operation of the
pilot plants in a manner convincing to other municipal waste managers
will be crucial to this task.
- The project is expected to overcome these barriers by: (a)
gaining experience in identifying, designing, constructing and
operating landfill gas recovery and utilization plants in China
by constructing and operating three pilot plants in three different
sites at Anshan, Maanshan, and Nanjing. (b) training national
staff to undertake the above functions over time. (c) building
capacity through experiences gained, and bringing in conditions
that will promote indigenous enterprises that will build and operate
recovery systems and utilize energy. Domestic manufacturing of
equipments will aim at lowering the costs of technology. (d)
promoting its acceptance among local decision makers and demonstrate
it as a viable measure that produces energy as well as reduces
air, water and land pollution. This will create essential incentives
to develop further institutional and legal framework related to
landfill gas recovery technologies. (e) by developing an action
plan based on the experience from pilot plant, to promote wide
spread replication and adoption of landfill gas recovery technology
in China. (f) strengthening existing national institutes to enable
them to disseminate the knowledge and techniques learned during
this project.PROJECT OBJECTIVESLong Term 13. The long term
objectives are to promote wide spread adoption of landfill gas
recovery technology in China based on the technical and organizational
experience gained from the three pilot landfills proposed in this
project. Specifically, these include (a) recovery of a resource
that will reduce fossil fuel use; (b) significant reduction of
emissions of methane, a greenhouse gas; (c) reduction in air,
water, and land pollution associated with refuse dumping; and
(d) promotion of indigenous enterprises that will build and operate
recovery systems and utilize the energy.Short Term14. In
order to realize these objectives, the following short term objectives
must be reached: (a) test several gas recovery designs on small
sections of three existing landfills or dumps in order to maximize
gas yield. (b) demonstrate several gas utilization systems at
the three small-scale trials; (c) use field trial data to design,
construct, and operate three full scale pilot landfill gas recovery
plants at sanitary landfills in Anshan, Maanshan, and Nanjing;
(d) develop an action plan to promote wide spread replication
and adoption of landfill gas recovery technology in China. (e)
strengthen Beijing Environmental Research Institute as a national
center for methane recovery research and dissemination, that will
disseminate the knowledge and techniques learned during this project.
The Center will provide valuable information and assistance to
municipalities and businesses in China.PROJECT DESCRIPTIONStrategy15.
Landfill gas recovery has not been attempted in China thus far,
but the Chinese government recognizes its importance in municipal
waste disposal and wishes to recover the methane that will be
generated from landfills. The construction of a sanitary landfill
for methane production is different than that designed merely
for waste disposal. Challenges such as water collecting in pipework
causing power surges, gas shortfall, air ingress, leachate migration
etc., have to be resolved, which requires field trials of gas
collection, utilization and power generation systems. In addition,
project developers, financiers, local planners, local authorities,
potential waste management companies, equipment suppliers, and
local residents are all stakeholders in such a scheme. Organizational
structures will have to be tested at each of the three sites in
China to address issues of concern to these groups, in order to
spur the replication of similar projects in other cities. This
project will test and resolve resource- and technology-specific
barriers at each of the three pilot sites, and develop organizational
setups to overcome the institutional barriers. Not only will
valuable experience be gained with methane recovery practices,
technology, management approaches, resources recovery and economic
management, the GEF project will provide a basis to explore institutional
roles and relationships between the various agencies and levels
of government involved. This is particularly important due to
the process of transition to the market economy which China is
undertaking. The output oriented central plan model of macro management
provided little by way of experience or motivation for waste reduction
or management. China hence lacks experience with management practices
which reflect economic and price incentives and which minimize
resources used for environmental management. The institutional
context which the project will provide to experiment with new
modes of management is particularly important from a public policy
perspective in China. In the absence of a GEF supported project,
these roles would not be examined with urban management responsibilities
continuing to fall along conventional lines. The project will
also allow Chinese managers to learn about the sustainable financing
opportunities which methane recovery and distribution can generate
to support municipal solid waste management. This will have a
very important demonstration effect in China.16. After a brief
phase of testing of gas recovery designs on small sections of
existing landfills and study-cum test of methane generation conditions
like analysis of waste parameters at the new sites, the project
resources will focus on three field trial sites where recovery
design can be tried and observed on landfills to determine which
will safely produce the highest and most consistent methane yields.
After the trial information has been analyzed, three full scale
pilot plants will be built to demonstrate methane recovery and
a variety of productive uses of the fuel resource. The pilot
plants will be constructed at sanitary landfills that meet NEPA
standards. NEPA will then be able to use the three sites to display
the latest standard in solid waste disposal for other cities in
China. It will also create a permanent Center to continue researching
methane recovery and utilization methods and to disseminate this
expertise to those cities starting new plants. 17. The creation
of an action plan and its implementation to disseminate the results
of the pilot plant operations are critical and important phases
of the project. China has 50 cities with a population over 1
million each. A number of these have populations in excess of
10 million (Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin). It would be reasonable
to expect that the administrative and financial base of these
cities of over one million could support the dissemination of
the administrative approach and technology demonstrated through
the GEF project over the next 1020 year period. The trends of
rural to urban migration, population growth and industrialization
in China suggest that the number and size of urban centres will
continue to grow rapidly in the future increasing further the
subset of cities which could support the dissemination of methane
recovery technology.Descriptions of locations of field trials
and pilot plants 18. Both the NEPA and China office of UNDP,
which is the implementing agency, are located in Beijing. The
Beijing Environmental Research Institute which is expected to
operate as the National Center for Methane Recovery Research and
Dissemination is also located in Beijing. The three trials, as
well as the three permanent full-scale pilot plants, will be located
at landfills in Anshan, Maanshan, and Nanjing. The main reasons
for choosing these three cities as demonstration sites are as
follows: (a) The waste streams from each city are very different
and represent different solid waste categories across China.
The organic content of the waste will vary from 60% in Anshan
to 80% in Maanshan. The landfills will be located at a distance
of 5 km from Maanshan and 15 km from Anshan. The methane percentage
of landfill gas is expected to vary between 40 and 50% at each
site. The three cities will generate refuse varying from 300
tonne per day (tpd) in Maanshan, to 800 tpd in Nanjing to 1200
tpd in Anshan. The Waste composition of Nanjing city is more
complex that the other two. (b) The sites are different in
terms of their age and level of technology/landfill practices.
Whereas the Anshan site is a new site where technology could
be designed into the landfill process from the bottom up, Nanjing
is an existing site where the challenges of technology introduction
and changes in landfill site management will be explored during
the implementation of the project. Maanshan is in an intermediate
stage of its life cycle. (c) The amount and method of leachate
pollution control are very different in these cities. (d)
The geologic conditions of the three cities are very different.
The geologic conditions at Nanjing, Anshan and Maanshan are clay,
stony and waste mine quarries respectively. Hence, the engineering
designs are different. (e) The sites are in parts of China
that are not only geographically distinct but are from three very
different types of cities that face different public policy and
management challenges related to what stage of the transition
to the market economy they find themselves in. Anshan in northeast
China is characterized by heavy industry comprised of State owned
enterprises running on the central plan model and which face an
old style approach to municipal management based on allocative
and administrative decision making. Nanjing on the other hand
is a city more fully absorbed into the transition to the market
economy where business and commerce run on market and price signals
more so than on central planning. As such municipal planners
and managers are more apt to experiment with new gas pricing and
land management practices. Thus the institutional structures
are different between the three sites, yet representative of other
Chinese cities. This GEF project can demonstrate the benefits
of landfill gas recovery in both the old and new contexts which
are both present in China during the economic transition process.
(f) Each city has performed primary research on gas recovery
systems, and (g) Local governments have paid more attention
on this topic.19. These seven factors mean that different demonstration
effects can be achieved at the three sites and technology could
be compared for its effectiveness in different public policy and
financing contexts. 20. Local and municipal governments increasingly
bear the economic and administrative responsibility to provide
urban infrastructure and services including the provision of water
and sanitation services. While these governments have attended
to developing urban infrastructure and communication, less attention
has been given to channelling resources for "non-productive"
local investments such as water and sewage treatment and waste
disposal and management. The main tax base for local authorities
stems from large state owned, and private enterprises. To date,
households and individuals bear little or no costs for the sanitation
services which are provided. As part of the pilot projects, new
organizational structures will be tested to change the tax or
fee system, the way the municipal government can access financing,
the setting up of companies to manage gas collection and electricity
generation etc., which will permit each pilot plant to operate
cost-effectively in the future. 21. A detailed profile of each
of these three cities is in Annex 1. Activities22. This
project consists of four activities:Activity 1Determine the
best methods for efficient extraction of gas from existing and
new landfills. This involves the following three steps: Activity
1.1: test several gas recovery designs on small sections of existing
landfills in order to optimize the yield of gas and get information
on exact volume of gas under various conditions. Activity 1.2:
Study and test designs at new sites. Activity 1:3: Apply from
choices made in the above two activities to field trials and test
landfill gas collection techniques and layouts at three sites.
At least two forms of energy utilization should be confirmed
for use in China: electrical production using internal combustion
engine/generators, and direct transport of the methane-carbon
dioxide mixture to near by kilns or industrial boilers. The plants
will be small but useful for real-world demonstration using state
of the art equipment. Resources will not be spent on unnecessary
structural or site features. Information gathered at this stage
will be useful for both pilot site plant designs and for the action
plan to be developed in the next stage. The trials will operate
for a sufficient duration to produce a full set of data on varying
operational conditions. The following is a list of design factors,
operating variables and outputs, among others, that will be studied.
Effect of fill height and density on gas yield and quality;
Effect of leachate recirculation on gas yield; Methane
content and variability; Optimum blower settings (flow and
pressure); Gas yield per year per unit of fill volume; Effect
of clay cover thickness on yields; Effect on yield from wells
with horizontal branches; Off site gas migration data; Operational
cost experience; and Design features for permanent pilot plants.
The most practical designs and operating procedures will be transferred
to permanent pilot plants for full commercial utilization. Trained
staff will be provided at each trial location to operate and maintain
the equipment, vary operating parameters, gather and analyze data,
make plant changes, work closely with energy purchasers, and give
detailed tours to visitors. The result of this task will be a
complete technical report from each installation and a coordinated
report that will link the data and will draw appropriate conclusions
there from. Activity 2Design, Construction,
and Operation of Three Pilot Landfill Gas Recovery Facilities:
Three pilot plants will be constructed at NEPA-standard sanitary
land fills at Anshan, Maanshan, and Nanjing in order to fully
demonstrate the field research and development trial results.
Design and construction funds for these landfills are being
provided by the cities themselves as part of the co-funding.
The following tasks will be performed at all three facilities:
Activity 2.1: Review Existing Landfilling Plans. It is possible
that the landfilling plans done earlier for the three facilities
are not fully compatible with the criterion of maximum landfill
gas capture. For example, cell sequencing should permit one section
of the site to be brought to full elevation and capped so that
methane collection wells may be installed. Information from the
trials may affect disposal operating procedures such as compaction
requirements, or installation of horizontal well branches as filling
proceeds. Plans and operating manuals will be revised as needed.
Activity 2.2: Design Landfill Gas Collection System. This task
will build upon the knowledge gained during the field trials.
A sequenced plan for each site will include a schedule of when
each section will be completed and ready for gas harvesting, and
it will present a table of expected energy yields over time.
Activity 2.3: Select Energy Recovery Plant Configuration. This
task also builds on field trial experiences. The type and capacity
of system components will be selected. Agreements will be reached
with the intended fuel or electricity markets, and a schedule
for bringing on additional modules to use increasing gas supplies
will be prepared. Design, construct and start first
stage Environmental and other needed permits will be obtained.
Detailed plant designs will include ample viewing access for
visitors interested in replication of the systems. Space will
be provided for adding system modules. It is expected that all
three systems will be operating, at least under part load conditions
before the four year project duration has elapsed. Full operation
will be phased in by the cities over a number of years. Activity
3:Strengthen the National Center for Methane Recovery and Dissemination.The
Beijing Environmental Research Institute will be strengthened
to continue the task of maintaining,and assimilating the outputs
from earlier 3 activities. It will become a permanent centre
called the National Center for Methane Recovery Research and Dissemination.
This facility will be the primary means to train personnel from
cities interested in building methane recovery plants. It will
disseminate knowledge and techniques learned during this project,
and later, to all areas of China and to other developing countries.
It will produce videos of pilot plants and provide summaries of
studies, reports, designs, and new developments to all interested
parties. It will keep up with world developments, set up regular
training programs, and manage a resource of reports, software
packages, videos, and other materials from around the world. The
manufacturers, private entrepreneurs and financiers will be involved
in the dissemination programmes and task force groups to enable
them free access to the modalities, and activities of the project
and come up with viable systems at the end of the project. Activity
4: Development of an Action Plan to Promote Widespread
Adoption of Landfill Gas Recovery Technology.The information
collected from the three demonstration projects will be used as
the basis for the National Environmental Protection Agency to
develop an action plan to promote widespread adoption of methane
recovery from sanitary landfills in China. The action plan will
have the following major elements: Activity 4.1: Formulate National
policy, regulations and standards for methne recovery from sanitary
landfills. Activity 4.2: Establish financial aid or other incentive
policy for municipalities to adopt methane recovery system. Activity
4.3: Provide technical assistance to municipalities and private
sector entrepreneurs in the planning, design, construction, and
operation of methane recovery systems.China has set a goal that
by the year 2000, 60% of all municipal refuse should be disposed
in sanitary landfills. The action plan will spur the adoption
of methane recovery by most of these landfills.Outputs23.
The output of these four activities will be: a (1) body of knowledge
on efficient methods to reduce methane emissions from the nation's
landfills and practical ways to utilize the recovered energy in
the context of the China economy; (2) number of small and commercial-scale
landfill gas recovery demonstration plants; (3) identified local
entrepreneurs and partners for commercial management of landfill
and power generation sites. (4) number of engineers, operators,
and managers who will have gained first hand experience in landfill
gas recovery; and (5) a permanent center to update and disseminate
the knowledge required to facilitate methane recovery in large
numbers of Chinese cities.INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR PROJECT
DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION24. A number of national, local,
and foreign entities will be responsible for developing, managing,
and implementing the project. Their roles are summarized below:
(a) UNDP. The UNDP will provide overall leadership and management
from its in-country office in Beijing. In addition, the project
will benefit from the worldwide experience of other UN agencies
such as UNEP, and UNIDO. (b) NEPA. The National Environmental
Protection Agency has formulated and coordinated this project
from its inception, and it will continue to play that role. NEPA
will review all activities for technical quality, economic efficiency,
organizational performance, and adherence to national environmental
laws and policies. NEPA will rely on other national agencies
and ministries such as agriculture and energy. (c) City Governments.
The pilot plant host cities have already organized task forces
for the project that link the Environmental Protection Bureaus
(EPB's), with the sanitation, and construction departments under
the leadership of a deputy mayor. These organizations will plan
and implement the field trials and the pilot plants. It is anticipated
that city personnel will play a major role in operating the methane
plants, although the possible role of NGOs will be evaluated during
the project. The cities will perform under NEPA direction. Beijing
will appoint a city department to manage the field trial in that
city. (d) NGOs. Both NEPA and the cities will rely heavily
on a variety of institutes, universities, and private consultants
to perform much of the study, research design, and engineering
work involved in every phase of the project. The work will be
let out on a competitive basis. (e) Private manufacturers and
financiers. At each of the three pilot sites, private manufacturers
and financiers will collaborate with NEPA, city governments and
NGOs to help decide the best equipment and financing schemes that
could be set up so as to be able to replicate the pilot projects
elsewhere in China. (d) The owners and operators of the landfill
will negotiate a power purchase agreement with the electricity
bureau and/or an neighboring industry interested in purchasing
power from the landfill plant. China has little or no experience
in negotiating such agreements at the moment and the project will
serve as a model for the purchase of electricity.DEVELOPMENT
DIMENSIONS25. The objectives of the landfill gas recovery
project are in accordance with China's environmental and energy
policies. The project is consistent with the country's Eighth
and Ninth Five Year Plans which call for demonstration technologies
and comprehensive environmental programs at the local level.
In fact, the government is counting heavily upon this project
to initiate the gas recovery portion of its environmental strategy.
26. The project provides the necessary technical skills that
may be required to set up large scale methane recovery projects
which will be cost-effective in introducing co-generation. The
pilot plan scales are too small to introduce waste heat recovery
at a meaningful scale.27. The project also furthers UNDP development
themes such as sustainable development, exploitation of indigenous
resources, environmental improvement (both global and local),
and technology transfer of new industrial techniques.SOCIO-CULTURAL
IMPACT28. Widespread adoption of landfill gas recovery projects
will result in at least two positive changes to the citizens associated
with or living nearby the projects. First, the construction and
operation of standard landfills and gas recovery facilities will
provide a number of medium skill jobs. Second, methane is clean-burning
fuel, and to the extent that it is used to replace the use of
coal, air pollution will decrease. No negative socio-cultural
impacts are anticipated.SUSTAINABILITY - INSTITUTIONAL, FINANCIAL,
AND HUMAN29. The recovery and use of a waste resource that
is superior to the resource it replaces is normally an easily
sustainable activity. In this case the national and local authorities
strongly support landfill gas recovery, and the economic conditions
indicate (from preliminary analysis) that well run recovery operations
should realize positive cash flow. Design and operation techniques
are easily learned and replicated. In view of these factors, large-scale
replication of the pilot plants should have a strong chance of
occurring. Even when economic incentives are not clear-cut, city
leaders are likely to use other financial means to sustain plant
operation. One other factor that may enhance sustainability will
be studied during the project, and that is privatization of all
or part of energy plant operations.LESSONS LEARNT30. The
project has the working example of the Coalbed Methane (CBM) project
in China.The UNDP pilot phase GEF project in CBM development was
instrumental in overcoming the basic issues of defining institutional
responsibility by providing a context for various entities to
talk to each other about concrete resources rather than domain
and turf. A new CBM development corporation drawing on three principal
ministries is being set up in China to handle CBM resources as
a result of the CBM project. Methane resource development is now
a stated energy sector development in the 9th Five Year Plan,
mostly with respect to the coal sector so far. In the case of
municipal waste methane it is not clear as of now who owns it
because it has not been commercially (or otherwise ) harvested
and applied. This means that the new GEF project will provide
the first opportunity with a practical context for the Chinese
agencies to explore this. The experience of the CBM project in
bringing together various institutions at different levels of
operation will serve as a valuable exercise to learn from.RATIONALE
FOR GEF SUPPORT31. Municipal refuse undergoing anaerobic decomposition
in landfills continuously emits greenhouse gasses, methane and
carbon dioxide, for decades. Methane will soon rival carbon dioxide
as the most important greenhouse gas. If this project is approved,
the methane produced from three landfills with annual inputs totalling
almost one million tons of solid waste per year will be captured
and used. As most fuel uses in China will replace coal, global
warming will be mitigated in two other ways: decreased emissions
of carbon dioxide, and decreased methane escape from coal mining
operations. The net effect will be reduced methane from landfills
and coal mines, reduced carbon dioxide from power plant coal combustion,
offset to a smaller extent by increased carbon dioxide emissions
from methane combustion at landfills (see Table 1 below). 32.
When the three landfills are full, the quantity of waste in place
will total about 16.8 million tons (metric). The amount of landfill
gas captured at those three sites would be approximately 518 million
m3 at a unit incremental cost of $4.52 per tonne of C equivalent
(Table 1).
Table
1:
GHG
reduc
tion
Item Value Explanation
1. Landfill gas from the three 270 + 66 + 182 = Anshan+Maanshan+Nanj
sites (Mn. 3) 518 ing
2. Methane gas (Mn. m3) 518 * .5 = 259 50% landfill gas is
methane
3. Methane gas (Th. tonnes) 259 * .662 = 171 Density=
0.662 kg/m3
4. Methane gas avoided (Th. 171 * 6 = 1028 Radiative forcing
tonnes C equiv.) index=22
5. Methane combustion CO2 release 171 * 12 / 16=128
(Th. tonnes C)
6. CO2 avoided from coal 128 * 25.57 / Assume same thermal
combustion (Th. tonnes C) 14.47 = 227 efficiency of small
gas and large coal
power plants
7. Avoided coal mining methane 40 Assume 23.23
(Th. tonnes C) m3/tonne of Chinese
coal
8. Net avoided emissions (Th. 1028 - 128 +227 + Rows(4-5+6)
tonnes C) 40 = 1167
9. GEF funding (Mn. US $) 5.285
10 Cost-effectiveness ($/tonnes 4.52 Rows (9/8)
C)
33. The proposed project has the potential to reduce substantial
quantities of an important greenhouse gas, and it satisfies all
GEF's generic criteria for selection. The potential for nationwide
methane recovery will be many times that amount when plants are
replicated throughout China. Even though the project has significant
global and national benefits, it is unlikely to be included in
China's development portfolio without GEF funding because of technical
uncertainty and the lack of trained personnel.34 Given the lack
of sanitary landfills in China, it is appropriate for GEF to assist
the Chinese Government to establish demonstration projects for
the purpose of utilizing methane.LINKS WITH CONVENTIONS35. China
signed the Convention on Climate Change in 1992 in Rio de Janeiro
and ratified on January 5, 1993. The country supports capacity
building, technology transfers, and demonstrations for disseminating
greenhouse gas mitigation methods.INCREMENTAL COSTS36. Please
see Annex 4.COST-EFFECTIVENESS37. The methane recovery and utilization
program is consistent with the Long-Term Measures component for
removing implementation barriers for technologies as defined in
the GEF Operational Strategy. The unit cost of the proposed project
is below the range described in the GEF Operational Strategy between
$5.30 and $10 per tC. Thus at an incremental cost to GEF of $4.52
per tC the project is worthy of being funded. 38. When future
plants are built according to methods learned at the pilot facilities,
local domestic benefits are expected to exceed domestic costs.
This is because China will have her own experiences in construction
of landfills at that time and the equipment can be made domestically.
Domestic experts and technicians costs are much lower than that
in developed countries. Thus, once the practice of harvesting
landfill gas is firmly established in China, it will be sustainable
either by market incentives or by a combination of market and
municipally funded incentives. To reach that point the nation
must carefully prepare for and experience a number of substantial,
modern, and full-scale demonstrations and disseminate the knowledge
gained. Only then can other cities confidently train their personnel
and construct their own plants.39. The cost to GEF of ensuring
sustainability of methane projects is more than just capacity
building and training. It must include a strong research phase
to adjust for China differences and commercial-scale operating
facilities that will be used as continuing demonstrations of the
technology, its management, and its economic benefits. This will
further catalyze the spread of the new technologies and practices
throughout China.SPECIFIC ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES ADDRESSED40. The
widespread introduction of landfill gas recovery will bring with
it a number of local environmental benefits. These will be in
addition to the beneficial impacts of a well-designed sanitary
landfill that: prevents leachate from polluting ground and surface
waters and reduces disease-bearing vectors. The capture of landfill
gas will eliminate the noxious odors coming from the landfill
and will destroy trace toxic gasses that may exist in high enough
concentrations to increase cancer rates of local citizens. As
a result of this project landfill gas is to be used directly as
a fuel or in engines to generate electricity. In China, that
normally means that coal will be replaced, so there will be significant
reductions in air emissions caused by burning coal. It has been
estimated, based on the 20 year estimated quantity of landfill
gas which may be produced from the Anshan, Maanshan and Nanjing
Landfills assuming that the BTU value per pound of coal is 9,000
and the BTU value per cubic meter of untreated landfill gas is
approximately 15,891 that approximately 238,367 tons (Anshan),
58,265 tons (Maanshan) and 160,671 tons (Nanjing) of coal for
a total of 457,296 tons of coal could be replaced over the 20
years of landfill operation. This estimate is of course variable
because it does not take into account the power usage of the plant
and the possible enhancement of the landfill gas to increase the
BTU value above 450 BTU/SCF.INVOLVEMENT OF PRIVATE SECTOR AND
LOCAL COMMUNITIES41. Local communities will be involved in landfill
gas recovery at several levels. Initially most of the expertise
will come from private foreign consultants. Much of that knowledge
will soon be passed on to Chinese consultants and institutes such
as the Beijing Environmental Sanitation Research Institute and
the Anshan Coking and Refractory Engineering Consulting Corp.
NEPA will rely on such resources to perform the first phase of
this project on a competitive basis. In later phases, foreign
and national local bodies will be involved with designing the
trials and pilot plants. Equipment will be supplied by manufacturing
companies, initially foreign and later domestic. Some of the
plant construction may be performed by local builders. Landfill
gas based electricity will be sold to local enterprises, farmer
cooperatives, and similar organizations. During the full scale
preparation of the project document, the details of power purchase
arrangements between producers and consumers will be addressed.42.
During the study phase possible roles of local enterprises and
the private sector will be studied. This may be the most efficient
way to exploit economic incentives that are built into landfill
gas recovery during plant operation. Also the private sector
will be involved in financing future gas utilization plants, possibly
using joint-venture formats frequently used in Nanjing and other
Chinese cities.Budget43. The total budget for the project is US$5.285
million in GEF funds and $14.28 million in counterpart funds.
An indicative budget for the GEF funds is presented below:
PROJECT BUDGET (US$
'000)
Consultant Training Equipment Install. & Totals
s Oper.
1. Field Trials 380* 50* 835 300 1,565
2. Three Pilot Plants 250* 150* 2,016 400 2,816
3. Strengthening R&D 150* 100* 200* 25* 475
Center
4. Action Plan 100* 75* 175
Subtotals 880 375 3,051 725 5,031
Monit. & Eval. (2%) 100
Support costs (3%) 154
TOTAL 5,285
* Incremental capacity building cost as cited in Annex 4. 44.
The budget for baseline funding of $10.77 million is shown in
Annex 3. WORKPLAN45. This project will be implemented over four
years. Shown below are the approximate task durations.
Project
Years
1 2 3 4
1.0 Field Trials
1.1 For Existing LF sites: Test Several Gas xx
Recovery Designs
1.2 For New LF sites: Study conditions of waste xxx
characterisation and Test Gas Recovery Designs
1.3 Coordinate and Apply Test Results of 1.1 & x xxxx xxxx
1.2
2. Three Pilot Plants xx xxxx xxxx
3. Strengthen Research & Dissem. Ctr. xx xxxx xxxx xxxx
4. Action Plan xx xxxx xxxx xxxx
Annexes1 Descriptions of locations of field trials and pilot plants
2 Landfill Design Specifications3 Budget for Baseline Activities
($10.77 million)4 Incremental Cost Analysis5 Cost analysis for
Power Generation6 Cost/benefit analysis 7 Government Endorsement8
STAP Reviewer's Comments ANNEX 1 - DESCRIPTIONS OF LOCATIONS
OF FIELD TRIALS AND PILOT PLANTS Anshan Located in Liaoning Province,
Anshan is a northeastern city at 41 degrees north latitude. It
is the steel capital of China and has a population of about 1.35
million in its urban center. Anshan produces "city"
gas from coal gasification. By 1990, its gas distribution network
served 90% of the city, and district heating served 70%. Municipal
refuse output averages 1,200 tons per day. Its organic content
is very high, over 60 percent, because it contains little coal
ash (typically a large waste component in northern Chinese cities)
due to the availability of gas for cooking and district heating.
Anshan has been using the Gangguanling Landfill for the past
several years located about 10 Km outside the city. The facility
has not been designed or operated as a sanitary landfill, e.g.
there is no compaction, leachate collection, or application of
daily cover. It must be closed as soon as the new landfill is
open. More than one million tons (metric) have been deposited
at this site at depths exceeding 12 meters in some places. One
gas extraction well has been producing landfill gas on an experimental
basis since 1990. The gas is used to complete combustion of medical
wastes and to fire a hot water boiler used to heat a greenhouse
constructed on site. A new landfill site located about 15 km
from the city has been selected, tested, and purchased. This
facility will be designed as a sanitary landfill and will provide
the gas for Anshan's methane recovery pilot plant.Maanshan At
32 degrees north latitude, Maanshan is located in the east of
Anhui Province, on the bank of the Yangtze River. Maanshan is
also a steel city, ranking in the top ten in China. Its inner
city population of about 400,000 is 80% served with a gas distribution
network. The gas cooking and the very low heating requirements
mean that very little coal ash goes into the municipal waste stream.
Thus the over 300 daily tonnage of waste contains over 80% organic
material. Waste tonnage is growing at about 10% per year.In 1985
a landfill was built at Xiangshan, about 5 km north of the city.
It was not originally designed as a sanitary landfill, but construction
is underway to upgrade the new parts of the fill to national standards.
A leachate treatment plant will soon be built to treat leachate
from both the old and new sections of the facility. Eight landfill
gas extraction wells have been installed in the portion of the
landfill that has been closed and capped. Gas from one of these
wells is used on a daily basis to heat hot water for showers for
sanitation workers and to fuel small stoves. NanjingLocated 50
km north of Maanshan on the east bank of the Yangtze River, Nanjing
is in the southwestern corner of Jiangsu Province and is its capital.
It a fast growing commercial, manufacturing, and cultural city
of about 3.6 million (urban only). Nanjing has developed into
a busy international trading center, attracting foreign investments
in its many ventures. It will soon be completing its international
airport. Nanjing's waste stream is currently more than 2000 tons
per day and growing. The city is building three new sanitary
landfills in three different directions from the center. Each
will accept up to 800 tons per day at first. The Jiaozishen Landfill
is complete and is being used. It has a fully operational leachate
treatment plant. The Shuige Landfill, under construction until
mid-1994, has also begun to accept wastes. Construction is just
starting at the Tinajiawa Landfill. It is expected that either
or both Jiaozishen and Shuige will be the site of the field trials,
and only one will be the site of the full-scale pilot plant. ANNEX
2 - LANDFILL DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS Anshan Maanshan Nanjing1.
Total landfill are 36.3´104m2 13.3´104m2 24.8´104m22.
Total capacities of landfill 966´104m3 312´104m3 639´104m33.
Municipal refuse landfilled daily 1200t 300t 800t4. Municipal
refuse landfilled annually 438´103t 110´103t 292´103t5.
Municipal refuse landfilled for 20 years 8.76´106t 2.20´106t
5.84´106t6. Average Amount of landfill gas recovery daily*
3.7´104m3 0.9´104m3 2.5´104m37. Average amount
of landfill gas recovery annually 13.51´106m3 3.29´106m3
9.13´106m38. Amount of landfill gas recovery for 20 years
270´106m3 66´106m3 182´106m39. Gas recovery starting
after Landfill begins 2 years 2 year 2 year10. Landfill service
duration 20 years 20 years 20 years11. Type of Power generator
500 kw 300 kw 500 kw* landfill gas from municipal refuse contains
40--50% CH4. The uncertainty of amount of landfill gas recovery
is ±10%. ANNEX 3 - BUDGET FOR BASELINE ACTIVITIESCost Estimates
for Landfill Gas Recovery and Utilization in Three Landfill Baseline:1.
Garbage disposal and reconditioning of land:Capital Cost* (in
million RMB Yuan): Anshan Maanshan Nanjing1) Project Preparation
(Including site selection, feasibility, prospecting, EIA, design,
etc.) 1.50 0.80 1.002) Refuse Collection Vehicle 6.80 3.25 5.003)
Transfer Station 0 3.75 04) Land Acquisition 4.00 2.00 5.105)
Construction of Roads, Water and Electricity Supply 6.00 1.95
4.206) Construction of Landfill (Including site construction,
lining material) 16.00 5.00 9.007) Construction of leaching Treatment
Plant 4.00 2.00 3.008) Landfill closing and soil, vegetation
cover 5.00 1.30 2.00 Subtotal 43.30 20.05 29.30 TOTAL 92.65 Million
Yuan RMB = $10.77 millionAnnual operating cost(in million RMB
Yuan): Anshan Maanshan Nanjing1) Labor 0.50 0.16 0.402) Material(including
fuel, electricity and Water) 0.70 0.20 0.503) Maintenance 0.30
0.10 0.164) Operation of Waste Water Plant 0.55 0.19 0.44 TOTAL
2.05 0.65 1.50* The costs of land acquisition in the southern
cities is higher than that in northern cities because of the shortage
of land. The costs of soil and vegetation in Anshan are higher
than that in Maanshan and Nanjing. ANNEX 4 - INCREMENTAL COSTS1.
BROAD DEVELOPMENTAL GOALSCHINA'S ENVIRONMENTAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME
AND PRIORITIES DURING THE NINTH FIVE YEAR PLAN 1996 - 2000 and
Chapter 19 of China's Agenda 21 Action Plan provides for formulation
of laws and regulations governing environmentally sound management
of municipal solid waste. The Green Programme for environmental
investment lists control of solid waste pollution as its' third
priority category. The present project fits in the overall scheme
of pollution control and power recovery from landfill projects
set up during the Ninth Five Year Plan period.2. BaselineThe installation
and operation costs of the 3 sanitary landfill pilot projects
will be borne entirely by the Chinese Government. The Chinese
Government plans to build and operate sanitary landfills, in compliance
with national and provincial standards, in many cities in China.
3. Global Environmental ObjectiveThe global environmental objective
being pursued in this project is the reduction of GHG's from methane
emission from landfill methane emission, in accordance with the
goals of the Climate Change Convention. 4. GEF AlternativesThe
GEF alternative includes the activities described in the project
brief, namely efficient extraction of gas from old and new landfills
through design construction and operation of three pilot landfill
gas recovery facilities and increased information dissemination
of such projects by strengthening the Beijing Environmental Institute.
The manufacturers, private enterprises and financiers will be
involved in the dissemination programme and development of an
Action Plan to promote widespread adoption of landfill gas recovery
techniques which will be incorporated into the Action Plan.
5. System BoundaryFor the sake of this discussion, the China
Waste Management and Recovery System in the overall context of
Chinese policy for pollution control constitutes the system boundary.6.
Additional Domestic BenefitFour benefits may be identified from
this project. Large scale waste management by municipal authorities
will have health benefits by reducing health hazards from land
water and air pollution. However, this benefit will accrue under
both " with " and "with-out" the GEF project
on Methane Recovery. The other benefits are associated with the
information, technological improvement and training component
of this project. There will also be considerable potential for
professionals trained in waste management to filter out to numerous
upcoming landfill sites in the economy. A third area of domestic
benefit would be the likely involvement of private entrepreneurs,
producers and financiers to get involved in the future methane
recovery process. The lack of such facilities have been identified
as a barrier to the project left to the initiatives of the national
government and should therefore be treated as cost towards barrier
removal through installations of the gas recovery projects. There
will be a decrease in pollution from any fossil fuel fired plants
which will now be avoided or delayed. This is directly under the
purview of emission reduction objective of the GEF and makes the
project eligible for GEF funding.The direct domestic benefit from
sale of electricity and revenue collection ($5.10 million) has
been deducted from the calculation of incremental cost.7. CostsThe
costs of the project activities are taken to be approximately
US$19.57 million. Since there is a strong correlation between
domestic benefits, baseline funding of approximately US$14.25
million has been committed. 8. Incremental Cost MatrixFor the
purpose of methane collection and use, additional costs for a
gas collection system, including the pipes for collection and
transportation of gases, pumps, storage dams, purification and
pretreatment equipment; electricity generation facilities and
other related equipment will be incurred. These costs are incremental
to the baseline cost of sanitary landfills, and amount to US $8.80
million. The incremental costs, however, will be partly offset
by revenue derived from the sale of electricity over the life
of the project. Deducting the present value of this amount ($5.10
million) from costs and adding the incremental capacity building
costs of the order of $1.47 million, the net GEF incremental cost
of the project will equal $5.285 million. The above sum will
be used to overcome the technological and institutional barriers
to implementing a landfill gas collection and utilization system.
GEF is being requested to fund this amount. The detailed calculations
of incremental cost for the project are shown in the attached
annexes.The matrix is applied to the activities described in paragraph
22 and Annex 4.
(1) Baseline (2) (3) Increment (4) Revenue (5) Net (6) (7) GEF
Alternative of (2) - (1) from sale Increment Capacity incremental
(inclusive of of (3) - (4) building cost
Power electricity costs (5) + (6)
Generation
Cost)
Costs (US$ Mn) 10.77 10.77 + 8.80 = 8.80 (see 5.10 (see 3.70 1.58 5.28
19.57 annex 6) annex 6)
Domestic Health 1. Health Incremental Revenue skill
Benefits advantages advantages benefits from sale formation
from from sanitary through of
sanitary landfill dissemination electricity
landfill 2. Revenue of Gas
from sale of Recovery
electricity techniques
and training
Global Negative Methane mitigation skill
Environmental benefit combustion scenario: formation
Benefits (i.e. release 128 Emission
(Th. tonnes of emissions Th. T of C reduced by
C) from 1167 (Th. T
landfill of C)
methane 1028
Th. T of C
equiv.) +
CO2 avoided
from coal
combustion
(227) +
avoided coal
mining
methane (40)
= 1295
9. AgreementThe Government of China has agreed to the financing
arrangements presented in this document. ANNEX 4 - INCREMENTAL
COSTS (CONT.)Landfill gas generation and collection(in million
RMB Yuan)Capital Costs: Anshan Maanshan Nanjing1). Extra Construction
of Landfill* 3.00 1.00 2.002). Pipes 1.50 0.50 1.003). Exhauster
0.88 0.29 0.584). Boring 0.35 0.35 0.355). Gas Purification 0.90
0.30 0.606). Storage System 2.25 0.75 1.507). Extra Cover Material
2.00 0.70 1.508). Monitoring and Analysis Equipments 0.69 0.69
0.699). Other Necessary Equipment** Excavator w-100 (4 sets) 1.54
0.77 0.77 8t Dumper (3 sets) 0.60 0.60 0.60 3.5t Dumper (8 sets)
1.20 0.60 0.60 Loading trucks 2L-40 (3 sets) 1.10 1.10 1.10 6
m3 forklift trucks (4 sets) 2.00 1.00 1.00 TOTAL 18.01 8.65 12.69Annual
operating cost: Anshan Maanshan Nanjing1) Labor 0.20 0.13 0.162)
Material(including fuel, electricity and water) 0.55 0.10 0.353)
Maintenance 0.25 0.10 0.15 TOTAL 1.00 0.33 0.66Annual Benefit:
(If the landfill gas is sold without to generate electricity.)1).
Landfill gas recovery annually 13.51´106m3 3.29´106m3
9.13´106m32). Landfill gas price per m3(in RMB) 0.20 Yuan
0.24 Yuan 0.24 Yuan3). Annually revenue(in RMB Yuan) 2.70 million
0.79 million 2.19 million* The costs of construction of landfill
and covers for landfill gas recovery are different from original
planed sanitary landfill, which need extra engineering and material.**
The three demonstrations need to purchase the incremental necessary
equipments from abroad in order to collect landfill gas, these
costs should be placed in incremental costs. ANNEX 5 - COST ANALYSIS
FOR POWER GENERATION3. Electricity generation*(in million RMB
Yuan)Capital cost: Anshan Maanshan Nanjing1) Generator 6.00 2.00
4.002) Waste Heat Boiler** 1.20 0.80 1.003) Blower and compressor
1.20 0.40 0.804) Electricity Transportation System 1.50 0.80 1.205)
Controlling Equipment 0.86 0.60 0.70 TOTAL 10.76 4.60 7.70Annual
operating cost: Anshan Maanshan Nanjing1) Labor 0.15 0.05 0.102)
Material(Fuel, Electricity and Water, etc.) 0.50 0.20 0.403) Maintenance
0.10 0.04 0.08 TOTAL 0.75 0.29 0.58Annual Benefit:Electricity
generated(1m3 landfill gas produces 1.25kWh)*** 16.90´106kWh
4.11´106kwh 11.41´106kWhElectricity Price per kwh(in
RMB) 0.21 Yuan 0.24 Yuan 0.25 YuanAnnual Revenue 3.54 million
1.03 million 2.85 million* The priority option in the three landfill
sites is to generate electricity, because these landfills are
far away from the central cities. If selling landfill gas, they
need extra investment to transport the landfill gas to central
cities because there are few factories and villages nearby the
landfill sites.** The energy from waste heat boiler will only
be used for shower and heating in landfill plant itself. *** Landfill
gas contains 40--50% CH4. The heating value of landfill gas is
also 40--50% of that of CH4.Note:Manure: No manure will be sold.Uncertainties/risks:
The uncertainties include gas production uncertainties and the
lack of landfill gas recovery technology experiences in China.
ANNEX 6 - COST/ BENEFIT ANALYSIS Exchange rate: 1 US $ = 8.6 RMB
YuanLifetime: 20 yearsInterest Rate: 10%Gas produced in 20 years:
518 mill. m3Heating value: 16.77 MJ/m3Energy content: 8687 TJThermal
Efficiency of el. conv. 0.27 (Default value: 0.268)Electricity
produced in 20 years 647 mill. kWhCOSTS mill. Yuan mill. US$Landfill
gas collection Capital costs 39.4 4.58Yearly Operational costs
2.0 0.23Net Present Value 56.4 6.56Electricity GenerationCapital
Costs 23.96 2.79Yearly Operational Costs 1.62 0.19Net Present
Value 37.8 4.39TOTAL:Capital Costs 63.31 7.36Yearly Operational
Costs 3.62 0.42Cap. Cost Reduction Potential 0%Op. Cost Reduction
Potential 0%Annual revenue from selling electricityPrice per kWh
0.23 0.027(Default Value: 0.2295)Annual Revenue 7.42 0.86PV
of the Revenue 63.2 7.35Cash flow/ year/ mill US $ Costs Revenues1
- -2 6.63 -3 0.74 -4 0.42 -5 0.42 0.866 0.42 0.867 0.42 0.868
0.42 0.869 0.42 0.8610 0.42 0.8611 0.42 0.8612 0.42 0.8613 0.42
0.8614 0.42 0.8615 0.42 0.8616 0.42 0.8617 0.42 0.8618 0.42 0.8619
0.42 0.8620 0.42 0.8621 0.42 0.8622 0.42 0.8623 0.42 0.8624 0.42
0.8625 0.42 0.86NPV of the costs 8.80 mill. US $NPV of the revenues
5.10 mill. US $Incremental 3.70 mill. US $"Break Evens":Cost
reduction: -43%Electricity conv. efficiency 0.46Price of electricity
0.40 RMB Yuan 0.047 US $/ kWhor 15 % cost reduction + 0.35 conv.
efficiency + 0.26 RMB Yuan Price of Electricity ANNEX 7 - GOVERNMENT
ENDORSEMENTDate: 5 February 1996FROM: China National Environmental
Protection Agency Beijing, People's Republic of ChinaTO: Mr. Arthur
Holcombe UNDP Beijing RE: China Methane Recovery From Municipal
Waste - GEF ProposalDear Mr. Arthur Holcombe,After consultation
with Ministry of Finance, NEPA are entrusted, on behalf of China
Government, would like to reconfirm our endorsement for the submission
of the proposal mentioned above for GEF-OP reviewing and approval
forward.Best regards.Sincerely yours,(signed)Liu ChunyuDirector,
FECONEPA, ChinaFECO, China ANNEX 8 - TECHNICAL REVIEWChina: Promoting
Methane Recovery and Utilisation from Mixed Municipal Refuse
The comments of the STAP reviewer have been incorporated into the text of the
proposal. The project document has been put through extensive peer review
and technical review. The comments of the independent technical reviewer,
Prof. David Hall, have been incorporated and the proposal has been
strengthened accordingly. Questions raised in an earlier review of the
document have all been well answered in extensive consultation with the
country office, NEPA, (the local implementing agency) and consultants for the
project.
1. Overall ImpressionThis is a sound proposal which has a much
tighter time plan than previously envisaged. It takes more advantage
of the existing experience in other countries and explains the
necessity of overcoming institutional barriers to collecting methane
from landfill sites. The pilot plants should be operating within
four years; this should be closely monitored.I am fully in favour
of implementing the project as soon as possible because of the
undoubted climate change, environmental and social benefits which
will accrue from whatever variant of the project is implemented.2.
Relevance and PriorityBoth the relevance and high priority of
the project are self-evident and well presented in the proposal.3.
ApproachRapid implementation is warranted since the benefits will
be derived more quickly and replication possible sooner. Co-generation
should be an essential requirement when replication is considered
in the future so that maximum energy efficiency can be achieved;
the present plants appear too small and distantly located to
economically use all the heat generated.4. ObjectivesThese are
valid and it should be possible to achieve them within the four
year project time.5. Background and JustificationSufficient information
has been provided to justify the project and I am satisfied with
the explanations to the questions raised in previous reviewing.6.
FundingThis seems appropriate given the proposed counterpart contributions.
The training component is crucial to ensure effective and rapid
technology transfer; this funding should not be reduced.7 Time
FrameThe objectives should be readily attained within the four
years proposed.8 Additional CommentsThe setting up of a National
Centre for Methane Recovery and Dissemination appears an excellent
step. At a later stage when replication of landfill methane occurs,
specific outreach objectives and plans should be incorporated
into the Centre.When the project is ongoing it might usefully
be monitored / evaluated by independent experts on other forms
of MSW treatment e.g. biogas, composting, and incineration.
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