Estimating Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Potentials from Anaerobic Digestion at Emory University and Beyond Restricted; Files Only

Abstract

Landfilled food waste poses a threat to the Earth’s climate, yet addressing its disposal presents a readily attainable opportunity—a low-hanging fruit—to potentially mitigate climate change. Globally, the cradle-to-grave food production process encompasses 8% of total anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. About 5 teragrams (Tg) of food waste per year are generated by institutions like universities, schools, and healthcare organizations in the United States (US). Considering that the US wastes 73 to 152 Tg of food across all stages of production per year, the above-mentioned institutions share 5-7% of this food waste. It is thus imperative that we find ways to mitigate GHG emissions from such food waste. For this project, we were interested in quantifying emissions reduction potential and energy generation potential by using anaerobic digestion (AD) for the food waste generated across higher education institutions in Georgia, and specifically at Emory University. To do this, we conduct Monte Carlo Analysis to gain a net emissions estimate from employing AD across higher education in the state of Georgia to treat food waste. We found this was estimated to divert 13,096.07 t CO2e from landfills per year. We then explored the use of AD at Emory University by employing the EPA WARM model and models from case studies reviewed in the literature. We find that using AD at Emory can mitigate between 4,647.88 and 7,859.32 t CO2e per year from landfills, and can mitigate between 4.56 and 3.14 TJ of energy from being used during the landfilling process. Landfilled food waste can generate a net total of 4,069.37 to 6,543.31 t CO2e per year, while also using a net total of .04 to 1.14 TJ of energy. This work emphasizes that by processing food waste into byproducts like biogas and compost, AD can enhance local sustainable waste management practices in higher education institutions, generating clean energy for their local grids and enriching their soil. 

Table of Contents

1. Introduction.....1

2. Methods.....9

   2.1 Data.....9

   2.2 Monte Carlo Analysis.....12

   2.3 Environmental Protection Agency Waste Reduction Model (EPA WARM).....15

       2.3.1 Energy Factors.....16

       2.3.2 Emissions Factors.....17

   2.4 Case Study: Emory University.....20

       2.4.1 Case Study Area.....20

       2.4.2 EPA WARM Application.....22

       2.4.3 Application of Case Studies from Literature.....24

   2.5 Data Analysis.....24

3. Results.....25

   3.1 Monte Carlo Analysis Results.....25

   3.2 Application of EPA WARM.....28

       3.2.1 EPA WARM Energy Results.....28

       3.2.2 EPA WARM Emissions Results.....30

   3.3 Application of Case Studies.....33

       3.3.1 Application of Case Studies – Energy.....33

       3.3.2 Application of Case Studies – Emissions.....36

4. Discussion.....40

5. Conclusion.....43

About this Honors Thesis

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School	Emory College
Department	Environmental Studies
Degree	B.S.
Submission	Honors Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Environmental Sciences
关键词	Greenhouse gas emissions Anaerobic digestion Landfilling Food waste Monte Carlo Analysis
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Eri Saikawa, Emory University
Committee Members	Emily Burchfield, Emory University Mindy Goldstein, Emory University Michael Leo Owens, Emory University

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