Estimativa do potencial energético de um aterro sanitário: um estudo de caso na região de Ponta Grossa – PR

Abstract

The urbanization process, coupled with rapid population growth and changes in living standards, led to a significant increase in the consumption of goods and services and, consequently, the generation of solid urban waste. The landfilling technique is the most widespread in the country for the treatment and final destination of MSW, however, some municipalities still use methods that are inconsistent with environmental legislation and are responsible for severe damage to the environment. In general, the energy recovery of landfill biogas has the following advantages: reduction of greenhouse gases, generation of energy, additional revenue for landfills (energy and carbon credits) and reduction of the risk of self-ignition or explosion of the landfill due to high concentrations of methane. In addition to this, the increase in global energy demand and limited fossil fuels has raised interest in energy production from renewable sources. In this prospective, the work proposed a survey of the energy potential of a sanitary landfill to be implanted in the region of Ponta Grossa, in the state of Paraná, counting on 10 municipalities of the region, according to the proposal in the Regionalization Plan of Integrated Waste Management Solids of the State of Paraná. To estimate the potential for methane generation in the landfill the LandGEM mathematical model was developed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). According to the analyzes, the landfill would generate in a 20-year useful life a useful power of 566,081,834 kW and would serve 233,584 inhabitants, minimizing the emission of greenhouse gases and environmental impacts.