Potential direct uses of organic wastes on Bonaire

The project Sustainable and Circular Organic Waste and Sargassum Management on Bonaire (short name: BONCIRC) focuses on the development of approaches to sustainable management of organic waste streams on Bonaire, from a circular perspective. Currently, on the island organic waste is collected jointly with other types of wastes and mostly landfilled. This causes greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, nutrient leakage and eutrophication of natural environments and the coastal habitat. The biomass collected from the Sargassum seaweed influxes, that cause severe economic and environmental damage in the coastal areas, is included in the waste streams to be studied, as valorisation options for this stream are currently lacking in Bonaire. In this report the direct application of unmixed and mixed organic streams to higher value products is described. The organic streams discussed are chicken manure, pruning waste, waste water sludge, digestates that would originate from processing of mixed wastes, Sargassum biomass and spent coffee grounds. The biological treatment processes include cultivation of black soldier fly larvae and mushrooms, and composting. Other treatments are dry and wet thermochemical processes for the production of energy in the form of heat and biofuels. An overview of the selected processes and the feasibility and requirements needed for implementation of these processes at local conditions on Bonaire are assessed. This includes amongst other the feedstock quality requirement, the feedstock amount, and the market potential for Bonaire.