Energy recovery
Catalan factories continue their slow homogenization with Europe regarding the use of alternative fuels to fossils (mainly petroleum coke and coal). Thus, in 2019, the percentage of energy substitution (in terms of heat) reached 35%, through the use of more than 250 thousand tons of waste to be burned in kilns.
In relation to the previous year, the heavy increase in the use of vegetable biomass and end-of-life tires stands out, with growth of over 200% of these two types of waste. This has generated a substantial reduction in the volume of CO2 emitted into the atmosphere (26% compared to 2018), thus avoiding, for the first time in history, the emission of 316 thousand tons of this greenhouse gas. One more contribution of the sector in the fight against Climate Change.
| WASTE TYPE | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | Var. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plant biomass (industrial of agricultural origin, pineapple, olive bones, industrial of agricultural origin, shell, energy crops, untreated wood) | 76.424 | 11.470 | 41.621 | 263% |
| RDF-MSW | 135.307 | 131.582 | 138.563 | 5% |
| Animal meal | 35.840 | 36.165 | 38.908 | 8% |
| Urban wastewater sludge | 7.344 | 7.563 | 5.457 | -28% |
| Wood (wood processing cuts, bulky waste, packaging, construction and demolition waste, sleepers, urban and landscape elements) | 19.951 | 20.395 | 15.114 | -26% |
| Waste from end-of-life vehicles | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Waste from the paper industry | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| TDF | 10.256 | 10.103 | 16.448 | 63% |
| Total | 274.866 | 217.278 | 256.112 |
18% |
| % energy substitution | 29% | 31% | 41% | 14% |
| Avoided t of fossil CO2 | 255.080 | 252.028 | 316.876 | 26% |
Note: Quantities in tons.
Source: Generalitat de Catalunya
