COP29 side event explores the financing of methane mitigation from solid waste
Baku, 14 November 2024 – Yesterday, the World Biogas Association (WBA) and the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA) hosted an official side event at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, which aligned with COP29’s key agenda item on ’Methane Reduction from Organic Waste’.
The session aimed to contribute to the anticipated COP29 Declaration, which will aim to accelerate waste sector commitments aligned with the 1.5°C target, including quantifiable methane reduction targets in national climate policies.
Entitled “Unlocking the potential for financing methane mitigation from solid waste for the NDCs and beyond”, the event was chaired by Dr Pradeep Monga, Senior Advisor and Policy Director, WBA.
Martina Otto, Head of Secretariat for the Climate and Clean Air Coalition, opened the event with a keynote on the importance and urgency of the Global Methane Pledge. She was followed by WBA’s Chief Executive Charlotte Morton OBE then discussed the financing gap for methane action on solid waste and the potential solutions to tackle it. She presented WBA and ISWA’s G20 Policy Paper Unlocking the Potential for Scaling up Financing of Methane Mitigation from Solid Waste. Other speakers were Anja Schwetje, Scientific Officer, German Environment Agency / ISWA; Alfredo Miranda, Deputy Director for International Methane, Clean Air Task Force/ LOW Methane Partnership, and Janek Vähk, Zero Pollution Manager, Zero Waste Europe
“In this, our first COP29 official side event, the World Biogas Association presented the recently published G20 paper co-authored by ISWA and the Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), in which we made recommendations on the valorisation of methane abatement and on targeting climate finance to fund waste collection and treatment that prioritise high in waste hierarchy activities.” Charlotte Morton OBE said.
“Currently, only 2% of climate finance goes to methane emissions mitigation (Reuters 2023). Of that, a tiny proportion goes to waste management, and of that an even tinier proportion goes to organics recycling. US$3.9bn goes to incineration vs a mere US$22m on organic recycling, including biogas, despite organics representing over 50% of municipal solid waste in most countries.
Critically, 2.7bn people today lack any formal waste collection (UNEP 2024). Yet recycling the 105bn tonnes of organic wastes humans generate every year (food waste, sewage, manure, slurries, other agri-wastes, commercial/industrial wastes) through anaerobic digestion would deliver 50% of the Global Methane Pledge, reducing global temperature rise by a critical 0.1 degree Celsius. And generating sufficient biogas to displace one third of today’s fossil gas consumption. This is an opportunity that should no longer be missed.”
In the coming days, WBA will also be involved in the following COP29 side events:
15 November
10:30 –12:00 – ISWA Side Event: “Reducing GHG emissions by diverting waste into energy” – Venue: ISWA Pavilion, Green Zone
10:45-12:15 – Global Biofuels Alliance Roundtable: “Building consensus and enabling actions on performance-based sustainability assessments and frameworks” – Venue: Global Biofuels Alliance Pavilion, Green Zone
14:00 – 15:30 – WBA and GAIA side event: “Waste methane abatement through energy recovery: North-South discussions on energy access and efficiency of various technologies” – Venue: Methane Pavilion, Blue Zone
16:00-17:00 – Ernst & Young Side Event – “Methane Compliance under the New Global and EU Regulatory Regimes” – Venue: Neqsol Pavilion, Green Zone – WBA Head of External Affairs Giulia Ceccarelli will address the following questions: What is the role and potential of the biogas sector to reduce methane emissions from the waste and agriculture sectors globally? What needs to happen to scale up the industry to achieve this potential?
16 November
15:30 – 16:00 – We Don’t Have Time Side Event: “Buy More Time” session regarding methane where the topic is “Landfills and Waste” – Venue: Media Center (Zone D) of the COP29 Blue Zone, Baku Stadium
18 November
10:30 – 12:00 – WBA side event: “Making Biogas Happen by 2030” – Venue: ISWA’s Waste Pavilion, Green Zone
As part of its ground-breading #MakingBiogasHappen programme, WBA has developed a model Global Biogas Regulatory Framework and an International Anaerobic Digestion Certification Scheme for countries to adapt to their local environment, creating the necessary enabling environment to facilitate the development of bankable biogas projects.
15:30-16:30– WBA side event: “Making Biogas Happen by 2030” – Venue: Global Fuels Alliance
The World Biogas Association’s world first #MakingBiogasHappen (MBH) programme aims to cut years from the normal time it takes to develop the necessary policies, regulations and standards needed to support the biogas industry.
19 November
13:52 – 14:37 – Children & Youth Pavilion Side Event: “Organic Waste to Clean Energy: Reducing Methane for a Greener Future” – Venue: Children & Youth Pavilion, Blue Zone
16:45-18:18 – NDC Side Event: “The NDC 3.0 Navigator: A Deeper Dive on Methane Reduction in Food Systems” – Venue: Side Event Room 7, Blue Zone
– ENDS –
For further information, contact:
Jocelyne Bia, Head of Corporate Communications, PR and Brand Management
e: jbia@worldbiogasassociation.org; tel: +44 (0)20 3716 0592
Notes to Editors:
• Photo caption, left to right:
Dr Pradeep Monga, WBA; Martina Otto, CCAC; Anja Schwetje, ISWA; Charlotte Morton, OBE, WBA; Janek Vähk, Zero Waste Europe; Alfredo Miranda, Deputy Director for International Methane, Clean Air Task Force/ LOW Methane Partnership.
