Goa: To push production of solid biofuels, energy agency to link p’yats, farms

To stop open dumping and burning of agricultural waste and other green waste, and to reduce the carbon footprint, the Goa Energy Development Agency (GEDA) will connect the panchayats and local plantation owners with industries to aggregate biomass waste in the form of plantation and garden waste for the production of solid biofuels.
GEDA held a meeting with engineers from the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP), the Mapusa Municipal Council (MMC) chairperson, and the sarpanchs/secretaries of panchayats to join hands in the aggregation of biomass waste – in the form of plantation and garden waste – for the production of solid biofuels. A representative of the Bardez and Tiswadi block development offices, the Goa Waste Management Corporation (GWMC), and industries attended the meeting too.
GEDA has established a 40 tonnes per day biomass briquette manufacturing plant at Saligao. It is operated and maintained by Punjab Renewable Energy Systems Pvt Ltd (PRESPL) and produces 10-15 tonnes of biomass briquettes per day. Geda also recently launched a digital marketplace for biomass and biofuels for Goa.
The proposed biomass-based renewable energy project is the first of its kind in Goa, and will help replace fossil fuels with biomass briquettes. The GEDA member secretary said all panchayats, CCP and MMC should ensure smooth supply of biomass waste material on site. Crucial aspects of biomass waste supply and management were discussed.

A GWMC representative said that they receive about 8-9 tonnes of biomass waste per day at the Saligao solid waste management facility. The MMC chairperson and the Taliegao panchayat representative expressed their difficulty in stocking biomass due to a lack of space and said they also found it difficult to transport biomass waste to the designated site. Other panchayat representatives also expressed similar issues.
“It was decided that a representative of biofuel circle will visit MMC, CCP, and all the panchayats that currently dispose of their biomass waste at the Saligao solid waste management facility and ascertain the generated quantity of biomass waste on a daily basis, its type, the possibility of installation of shredder/chipper machines, and resolve the issue of transportation in the next fortnight, and also register them on GEDA’s ‘e-indhan’ portal,” a senior official said.

“It shall connect the panchayats and local plantation owners with the industrial end users of biofuels. Industries are to register on the biomass portal to meet their briquette demand and also inform the GEDA regarding their present procurement of briquettes. Every tonne of waste converted into energy is a step closer to achieving a greener, self-sufficient state,” the official said.

This article has been republished from The Times of India.