The average household in the UK uses around half a kilowatt of electricity an hour, a demand which is still met predominantly by fossil fuel based power generation. The average household also generates over a tonne of waste every year, with the majority of what cannot be re-used or recycled still going to landfill. Neither of these situations is sustainable over the long-term and as both move up the political agenda, the UK is actively engaged in finding a solution which is.
One, though, may be able to provide a solution to the other. The household waste that remains after re-use and recycling contains valuable energy, a significant portion of which can be derived from the biomass content of the waste stream. The efficient recovery of the energy from this biomass is a renewable and sustainable form of energy generation which is more environmentally beneficial when compared to traditional fossil fuel power generation, particularly when it also leads to landfill diversion.
The Biossence East London project will deliver just such a solution for the London boroughs of Barking & Dagenham, Newham, Redbridge and Havering by converting their household waste into green energy for distribution into the local area. At the heart of this facility will be a high efficiency, advanced thermal conversion process known as gasification that will decompose the waste into a hydrocarbon-rich synthetic gas. This synthetic gas can be used to generate enough electricity to power over 52,600 homes a year.