Published by Anna Di Giorgio
04/06/2024
In Teramo the new 28 million biodigester is being examined for its environmental impact. Methane will be produced from organic waste thanks to bacteria
The Teramo biodigester project, which will produce biomethane and energy from organic waste, enters the decisive phase of environmental assessment. The plant in the Carapollo district, which will be able to treat up to almost 40 thousand tons of waste per year, exploiting the “digestive” action of bacteria, will be built thanks to the over 28 million euros allocated by the Pnrr and will therefore have to be built by 2026.
In recent days, with the start of the regional environmental assessment procedure, the study presented by Te.Am – the company of the Municipality of Teramo which manages waste and which owns the work – on the consequences of entry into system regime on air quality.
«The impact will not reach such an extent that it can be considered dangerous for human health», we read in the document which however raises an alarm on the current presence of particulate matter, showing the data recorded in 2022 by the Arta control units: «It is highlighted that the background value for the maximum daily average of PM10 already exceeds the legal limit value. The increase due to the plant becoming fully operational will in any case be “very low”, if not “negligible”. In assessing the impact of the biodigester, the study takes into consideration weather conditions, morphology of the territory, emissions from the planned works and neighboring plants, but also the traffic of vehicles for waste disposal. Also evaluate possible bad odors in the area. The impacts on the civil receptors in the surrounding area are negligible, with the exception of one receptor which is considered a rural building.»
The study was also fundamental because the new plant will be built just a few hundred meters as the crow flies from the houses and warehouses of Villa Pavone, on the other side of the Tordino river. According to the Municipality of Teramo, for which the biodigester will produce green gas «which will be injected into the network or used for the production of electrical and thermal energy via a cogenerator», it will also allow the reduction of 120 tons of carbon dioxide generated by the trucks transporting waste, as well as reclaiming the area of the old shut down incinerator and saving 1.4 million euros in annual waste management costs.
