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Current state of biogas production in Croatia

Biogas consists mainly of methane (55-70%) and carbon dioxide (most often 30-45%) and small amounts of other compounds. It is important to stress positive socio-economic and environmental impact of biogas production by anaerobic digestion (AD) from various renewable raw materials, e.g. manure, agricultural residues, organic wastes from food industry, organic fraction of municipal waste or dedicated energy crops. In Europe, biogas is mainly used for generating heat and electricity, and in some cases is upgraded to biomethane and utilized as vehicle fuel, instead of fossil fuels. This reduces the emissions of greenhouse gases and thus prevents the climate change. In most biogas-producing countries, anaerobic digestion is taking place in industrial and farming scale. Domestic biogas digesters are mostly abundant in developing countries and intended mainly for direct combustion of the produced biogas in household stoves and gas lamps. Various renewable raw materials for large scale biogas production are available in Croatia, and the opportunities for their use are insufficiently exploited. The biogas produced in Croatia is mostly used for the operation of electric power plants. Biogas production in Croatia is predominantly based on manure and by-products from slaughterhouses, agriculture and food industry. Aside from producing biogas as a renewable fuel, the additional positive effects of anaerobic digestion of animal manure and slurries are organic waste degradation, reducing odours and pathogens, as well as possibility of use digested residue (digestate) as a byproduct rich in nutrients that can be used to fertilize agricultural land. Concerning large unused agricultural areas, great potential lies in their rational exploitation for growing biomass, e.g. for energy crops or perennial grasses. Biogas production in Croatia can be negatively affected by lowering animal breeding capacity due to inability to cope with the EU standards and prices. Current state of biogas production in Croatia and its potential in industrial and farming sector will be discussed, as well as various obstacles preventing faster development of biogas production sector.

anaerobic digestion, biogas, biomass, feedstock, renewable energy

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