Turning waste into a source of energy
Organic waste decomposing in landfill sites produces methane gas. If released uncontrolled into the atmosphere, methane contributes significantly to climate change. At the same time, valuable potential for energy generation often remains unused. This climate project in the Turkish province of Zonguldak addresses exactly this challenge by capturing methane emissions and using them to generate electricity. In doing so, the project reduces harmful greenhouse gas emissions while supplying energy to the national grid.
The project is located at a landfill site in central Zonguldak on Turkey’s Black Sea coast. Here, landfill gas is collected, treated and converted into electricity. The landfill receives around 500 to 550 tonnes of municipal waste every day, much of which consists of organic materials such as food waste, paper and wood. As these materials decompose, methane gas is produced. Through the project, this gas is captured and used as a source of energy. Currently, two power generation units with a capacity of around 1.5 MW each are in operation, with an additional unit planned for the future. The electricity generated is fed directly into the national grid, replacing fossil fuel-based energy sources.
Beyond climate action, the project also improves local living conditions. The controlled use of landfill gas helps improve air quality and reduce environmental impacts in the region. At the same time, the project creates jobs and strengthens local infrastructure. Particularly in industrial regions such as Zonguldak, sustainable investments like this can open up new economic opportunities for local communities.
The project demonstrates how waste can be used responsibly to reduce emissions, generate energy and support the sustainable development of the region.
Project Standard
The project contributes to the the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals
Methane is a greenhouse gas emitted by many processes including livestock farming, waste management, sewage treatment, oil production, and coal mining. When released into the atmosphere, it oxidises first to carbon monoxide and then to carbon dioxide, making it a major contributor to global warming. Climate projects avoid these emissions by capturing the gas and using it to generate heat or electricity, or by processing the gas into dry and liquid gas. In this way, the gas is not released into the atmosphere and is used to generate energy instead. Gas recovery projects in the ClimatePartner portfolio are registered with international standards.
The project aims to contribute to these United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Four criteria for projects to meet quality thresholds
The life cycle of a climate project
A climate project has a set life cycle consisting of various phases, from the feasibility assessment to the retirement of Verified Emission Reductions (VERs).
The project developer reviews the general feasibility of the project, the project design, and the financing. Then, the Project Design Document (PDD) is prepared, which contains all the basic information about the project, such as the objective, location, timeline, and duration.
In this phase, independent auditors examine the PDD and the information it contains. This phase often also involves field visits with on-side interviews and analyses. Auditors are accredited, impartial assessors who have to be approved by the relevant standard as a validation and verification body (VVB). TÜV Nord/Süd, S&A Carbon LLC., and SCS Global Services are examples of VVBs."
Once validated, the project can be registered with a standard such as the Verified Carbon Standard or the Gold Standard. All high-quality climate projects are based on international standards. They provide the framework for project design, construction, carbon accounting, and monitoring. Recognised standards make the climate project system and the projects themselves resilient, traceable, and credible.
After the climate project has been registered, the monitoring begins. Here, the project developers monitor and document the data of the project activities and progress. The duration of the monitoring phase varies from project to project: it can cover two years, but documentation over five or seven years is also possible.
At the end of each monitoring phase, a VVB checks and assesses whether the values and project activities stated in the monitoring report are correct. As with validation, visits to the project site are often part of the verification process.
Once verified, the emission reductions that were confirmed in the verification phase can be issued as VERs. The steps of monitoring, verification, and issuance of VERs are repeated regularly and are therefore considered as a cycle.
Once a VER has been used, it must be retired. This process is also reflected in the registry. If the financing of a climate project is done through ClimatePartner, the VERs are bundled in a system certified by TÜV Austria and then retired on a regular basis. This ensures that each VER can no longer be sold and is only used once, preventing double counting.
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