Specified Gas Emitters Regulation f\\_-A.AOOT c Quantification p NON'INCINERATIC J I Waste Conversioi November 2008 /dlberta Version 1.0 Non-Incineration Thermal Waste Conversion Protocol September 2008 Disclaimer: The information provided in this document is intended as guidance only and is subject to revisions as learnings and new information comes forward as part of a commitment to continuous improvement. This document is not a substitute for the law. Please consult the Specified Gas Emitters Regulation and the legislation for all purposes of interpreting and applying the law. In the event that there is a d ifference between this document and the Specified Gas Emitters Regulation or legislation, the Specified Gas Emitters Regulation or the legislation prevail. All Quantification Protocols approved under the Specified Gas Emitters Regulation are subject to periodic review as deemed necessary by the Department, and will be re- examined at a minimum of every 5 y ears from the original publication date to ensure methodologies and science continue to reflect best-available knowledge and best practices. This 5 -year review will not impact the credit duration stream of projects that have been initiated under previous versions of the protocol. Any updates to protocols occurring as a result of the 5 -year and/or other reviews will apply at the end of the first credit duration period for applicable project extensions. Any comments, questions, or suggestions regarding the content of this document may be directed to: Alberta Environment Climate Change Policy Unit 12th Floor, 10025 - 1 06 Street Edmonton, Alberta, T5J 1G4 E-mail: [email protected] Date of Publication: November 2008 ISBN: 978-0-7785-7680-8 (Printed) ISBN: 978-0-7785-7681-5 (On-line) Copyright in this publication, regardless of format, belongs to Her Majesty the Queen in right of the Province of Alberta. Reproduction of this publication, in whole or in p art, regardless of purpose, requires the prior written permission of Alberta Environment. © H er Majesty the Queen in right of the Province of Alberta, 2008 Page ii Non-Incineration Thermal Waste Conversion Protocol September 2008 Table of Contents Table of Contents iiii List of Figures iiii List of Tables iiii 1.0 Project and Methodology Scope and Description 1 1 .2 Glossary of new terms 6 2.0 Quantification Development and Justification 8 2. 1 . Identification of Sources and Sinks (SSs) for the project 8 2.2 Identification of Baseline 14 2.3 Identification of the SSs for the Baseline 14 2.4 Selection of Relevant Project and Baseline SSs 19 2.5 Quantification of Reductions, Removals, and Reversals of Relevant SSs 23 2.5.1 Quantification Approaches 23 2.5.2. Contigent Data Approaches 32 2 . 6 Management of Data Quality 32 2.6.1 Record Keeping 32 2.6.2 Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) 32 APPENDIX A: 36 Methane Generation Potential of Waste Materials 37 APPENDIX B: 39 Emission Factors for Fuel Production and Processing 40 APPENDIX C: 41 Emission Factors for Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) 42 APPENDIX D: 43 Equations for Inclusion of Transportation 44 List of Figures FIGURE 1 . 1 Process Flow Diagram for Project Condition 3 FIGURE 1 .2 Process Flow Diagram for Baseline Condition 4 FIGURE 2.1 Project Element Life Cycle Chart 9 FIGURE 2.2 Baseline Element Life Cycle Chart 15 List of Tables TABLE 2.1 Project SSs 10 TABLE 2.2 Baseline SSs 16 TABLE 2.3 Comparison of SSs 20 Page iii Non-Incineration Thermal Waste Conversion Protocol September 2008 24 TABLE 2.4 Quantification Procedures TABLE 2.5 Contingent Data Collection Procedures 33 Page iv Non-Incineration Thermal Waste Conversion Protocol September 2008 1.0 Project and Methodology Scope and Description This quantification protocol is written for the non-incineration thermal waste management facility or project developer, hereafter referred to as the BioEnergy Facility. Some familiarity with, or general understanding of the operation of a municipal solid waste facility is expected. The opportunity for generating carbon offsets with this protocol arises mainly from the indirect reductions of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from displacing a p ortion of fossil fuels with municipal solid waste. However, some opportunities from reduced feedstock transportation, or onsite heat/power production are allowed in the flexibility of this protocol. 1.1 Protocol Scope and Description This protocol quantifies the emission reductions from the avoidance of fossil fuel consumption, replaced by municipal solid waste on an equivalent energy potential basis. It also specifically includes reductions in GHG emissions due to any heat/power production and electricity generation related to the process, and from the avoidance of landfilling any organic materials which may be diverted for conversion to Biofuel. Biofuel is defined as the synthetic fuel gas (syngas) created from the conversion of waste. BioEnergy is defined to include electricity, and heat / p ower produced from the Biofuel. FIGURE 1.1 offers a process flow diagram for a typical project. Slag is a useful by- product of t he production of Biofuel. There is also a very small amount of residue left over from the Biofuel production process. Protocol Approach: The Non- Incineration Thermal Waste Management Protocol is not intended to be prescriptive, but instead serve as a generic ‘recipe’ for project developers (i.e. BioEnergy facility owners/operators) to follow in order to meet the measurement, monitoring and GHG quantification requirements. Since this Protocol is one of the first in the Alberta Offset System that represents a technological process that can be considered a “ new market entrant”, Project Developers applying this protocol will need to submit technology performance assessments (i.e. based on pilot or demonstration sites) along with their project documentation (see Protocol Applicability section for more detail). The baseline condition for the Non-Incineration Thermal Waste Management Protocol is that the municipal solid waste is being collected, handled and disposed of in a landfill (controlled or uncontrolled) such that anaerobic decomposition of the organic fraction would typically occur. The baseline also includes the use of fossil fuels by downstream users (calculated on an equivalent energy potential basis), the production of heat/power using fossil fuels at facilities that rely on heat/power from the BioEnergy facility, and the Page 1 Non-Incineration Thermal Waste Conversion Protocol September 2008 generation of electricity by other facilities to cover the net generation capacity of the BioEnergy facility. FIGURE 1.2 offers a process flow diagram for a typical baseline configuration. Page 2 3P age 2008 September P r o t o c o -C l e o U a B c« X. ©I 5 Conversion Waste Thermal Non-Incineration EoU6£ouo30 l o c 4 Page o t o r SePpte2m0b0e8r "a c o 'S U a cn OQ Conversion 5CWaS3- £ Non-IncineTrhaetrimoanl W a ste E(Qs(<<ooNh/X-u3I Non-Incineration Thermal Waste Conversion Protocol September 2008 Protocol Applicability: The boundary of the non-incineration thermal waste management protocol encompasses the production of feedstocks, production of BioEnergy, and the end use of fuel and by- products. To d emonstrate that a project meets the requirements under this protocol, the project developer must provide evidence that: 1. Measurement of waste stream composition will be conducted quarterly and following any changes in source or composition that may materially influence waste stream composition to assess the percent plastics by waste and any other characteristics required to estimate the Carbon Dioxide Emission Factor for the non-biogenic component of the feedstock, 2. The material being diverted to the BioEnergy facility, that is being claimed as diverted from landfill, would otherwise be landfilled as confirmed by disposal records or other means; 3. The BioEnergy facility must be in compliance with all required permits, including regulations regarding storage of waste on site; 4. Additional information outlining the technology performance assessments must be included in the Offset Project Plan. The Offset Project Plan is appended to the final Project Report when a G HG Assertion is being made1 and is included in the Project Documentation submitted to Alberta Environment. 5. The quantification of reductions achieved by the project is based on actual measurement and monitoring (except where indicated in this protocol) as indicated by the proper application of this protocol; 6. The project must meet the requirements for offset eligibility as specified in the applicable regulation and guidance documents for the Alberta Offset System. [Of particular note: • [The BioEnergy project must have received the first batch of feedstock that is not for a t esting phase, on or after January 1, 2002 as indicated by facility records;] • [The project may generate emission reduction offsets for a p eriod of 8 y ears unless an extension is granted by Alberta Environment, as indicated by facility and offset system records. Additional credit duration periods require a r eassessment of the baseline condition; and,] • [Ownership of the emission reduction offsets must be established as indicated by facility records.] 1 N ote - t he verifier is not expected to review technology performance - t he additional information on ‘new market entrants’ being collected is to enhance the understanding of the technology by the Alberta Government, in the context of the provincial offset system. Page 5 Non-Incineration Thermal Waste Conversion Protocol September 2008 Protocol Flexibility: Flexibility in applying the quantification protocol is provided to project developers in 7 (seven) ways: 1 . The heat and power production component of the process may be dealt with outside the scope of the protocol as part of a Waste Heat Recovery protocol. However, the project developer must justify the separation of this component of the project to ensure that the emission reductions are properly quantified between the two projects and that double counting does not occur; 2. The heat and power production component of the project may provide some or all of the heat and power requirements for the facility. Flexibility is p rovided in terms of allowing the broadening of the project scope to include existing, new, or retrofitted supplementary heating both on and off site to meet the project energy load; 3. In cases where the project developer wishes to quantify the emission reduction from reduced transportation requirements, then the GHG sources for the corresponding transportation related element(s) in project and baseline must be quantified (e.g. B4 and P4). Suitable equations are provided in the Appendix to the Alberta Environment Gas Protocol: Energy from Biomass ; 4. Site specific emission factors may be substituted for the generic emission factors indicated in this protocol document. The methodology for generation of these emission factors must ensure accuracy; 5. In particular site specific emissions factors for non-biogenic waste may be calculated from a mass balance and substituted for those indicated in this protocol document. The methodology for generation of these emission factors is discussed briefly in Appendix C; 6. In cases where the diversion of feedstocks from landfill cannot be verified, the diversion of feedstocks from landfill components of the project may be ignored in both the baseline and project conditions; and 7. For projects with a d edicated end-user of some or all of the electricity generation, where the non-incineration thermal waste management facility is connected by a dedicated line to that facility, site specific electricity generation emission factors may be substituted for the generic grid emission factors indicated in this protocol document. The methodology for generation of these emission factors must be sufficiently robust as to ensure reasonable accuracy. If applicable, the proponent must indicate and justify why flexibility provisions have been used. 1.2 Glossary of New Terms BioEnergy: A t erm for use in this protocol which encompasses the electricity or heat / p ower produced from the Biofuel. Page 6