Lucy Carney

• BA Hons Politics
• Is it possible to implement AD technology on a national scale to collect domestic household organic waste in the UK in order to achieve net-zero by 2050?

My project demonstrates that recycling food waste via anaerobic digestion (AD) can help the UK achieve net-zero by 2050. AD is a biological process where bacteria break down organic matter without oxygen to produce biogas and digestate, a natural fertiliser. Net-zero can be achieved quicker since biomethane is a renewable energy source, greenhouse gas emissions are reduced, and less waste goes to landfills.

I visited Wardley biogas plant and conducted interviews with local councillors to investigate the barriers to achieving the collection scheme and provided policy recommendations which may help to overcome them. Key barriers include funding, waste contamination and compliance by residents to properly recycle waste. My main recommendations are local education schemes for residents/businesses, councils maintaining dialogue with others who have implemented such schemes, reducing green bin collections to increase compliance, implementing food waste reduction schemes and councils lobbying national government if funding is insufficient.  

Funding source: Newcastle University

Project supervisor: Dr Katharine Rietig