Study pegs LatAm wastewater methane capture investment at US$250mn

The implementation of methane capture systems to generate power from intermediate wastewater treatment plants in Latin America would cost an estimated US$250mn.

So reads a study published by the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (Eclac) that looks at opportunities of the circular economy in the treatment of sewage.

The research focused on 75 plants with capacities of 500-4,000l/s that serve 33mn people in Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico and Peru.

The report highlights that although methane recovery is widespread in the region’s megacities, a large amount of the population in smaller cities lacks this type of coverage.

The investment also would create over 11,000 new “green” jobs and reduce methane emissions by 88%.

The study adds, however, that the principal barriers are the level of training of personnel, availability of long-term financing sources, and the need for additional investment to expand sewerage networks.

The Eclac document is available here.