Waste Could Become Bangladesh’s ‘Green Gold’

With rapid urbanisation, the volume of waste is also increasing as a byproduct. According to different sources, the country generates approximately 25,000 to 30,000 tonnes of municipal solid waste every day, with Dhaka producing approximately 7,000 to 8,000 tonnes, Chattogram 3,000 metric tonnes, Gazipur 1,500 tonnes, Narayanganj 1,000 tonnes, Khulna 800 tonnes and Sylhet 800 tonnes of waste daily. Though nearly 60 to 70 per cent of this waste consists of organic materials perfect for energy recovery, due to lack of capacity to collect or transform it to energy, a large part of this rubbish ends up in drains, canals and open spaces, causing severe waterlogging and pollution.

Besides, being an agricultural country with a vast livestock population, the country is home to around 30 million cattle and buffaloes, 40 million goats and sheep, and well over 400 million poultry birds, says the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock. With single cattle producing an average of 10 to 15 kilograms of manure daily, the livestock sector generates several hundred thousand tonnes of dung per day. If poultry litter, fish rubbish and agricultural residues like rice straw, husks, sugarcane bagasse, and crop waste are included, saying that the country sits on mountains of raw biomass will not be an exaggeration.

Analysis of various research findings suggests that altogether, the country has the potential to produce approximately 20 to 30 million cubic metres of biogas every day: 1.5 to 4 from municipal organic waste, 15 to 25 million cubic metres from cow dung, 1.5 to 2.5 million cubic metres from poultry waste, and 2 to 5 million cubic metres from agricultural residues. Since an average household requires about 1 to 1.5 cubic metres of gas per day for cooking, this volume could completely meet the daily energy needs of 13 to 20 million households. Financially, selling this gas at current domestic and international rates (Tk25 to Tk35 per cubic metre) would generate an annual revenue ranging from Tk18,250 crore to Tk38,325 crore. Experts believe that realising this enormous potential could significantly reduce Bangladesh’s dependence on imported energy while building a strong green economy.

Moreover, since biogas generally contains 50 to 70 per cent methane, this gas can be used in specially designed gas engines or generators to produce electricity. Countries such as Germany, China, India, Denmark and Sweden already use this technology extensively. In addition, because one cubic metre of biogas can generate around 2 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity, it is possible for the country to produce approximately 4.6 to 21.9 kWh of electricity annually, which is equivalent to what about 66 lakh to one crore households consume, respectively. Furthermore, as a highly valuable byproduct, the residual slurry left behind functions as a premium organic fertiliser.

Modern conversion technologies like pyrolysis, gasification, and hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) offer a third pathway: turning organic biomass into liquid biofuel to replace imported diesel. As one tonne of organic waste can yield 100 to 300 litres of biofuel, Bangladesh could produce 2 to 6 million litres of biofuel daily, generating between Tk8,760 crore to Tk26,280 crore annually, with an average price of Tk120 per litre.

Beyond energy security, establishing a national waste-to-energy infrastructure would serve as a massive engine for job creation. The supply chain spanning waste collection, transport, plant operations, engineering, technical maintenance and fertiliser marketing would directly employ 50,000 to 100,000 people and indirectly support up to 500,000 more. Ultimately, with targeted policies and strategic investments, Bangladesh can transform its waste management burden into a primary pillar of its economic security, environmental health and industrial growth.