Pilot project for construction of biogas plant in Kathmandu Valley

Preparations to launch a pilot project for a biogas plant in the Kathmandu Valley are underway, according to the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC).

'A pilot project will be set up that will produce biogas and compost fertiliser worth three metric tonnes every day,' says Rabin Man Shrestha, chief of the Environment Management Division at the KMC. 'It will be replicated in other areas also,' he adds. The KMC allocates about NPR 450 million (€3 million) for waste collection and disposal annually.

The project will receive funding from the European Union, which will sign an agreement of about €300,000 with the metropolis by 2 December, according to KMC sources

The plant will focus on utilising organic waste from the Bishnumati River vicinity, says Shrestha.

'Only segregated waste will be used in the plant,' he adds, 'This will help segregate waste at the sources.'

The Waste Management Act 2011 calls for segregation of waste at the sources and households, with fines ranging from NPR 500 to NPR 100,000 and two weeks to three months imprisonment for rule violators, but it remains unimplemented.

Of the total 1,435 metric tonnes of waste produced in the Kathmandu Valley, some 620 metric tonnes is produced in Kathmandu.

Waste from KMC and Lalitpur is dumped at the Sisdole landfill site, according to the Solid Waste Management Technical Support Centre.