What could your organic resources produce?

Start with a quantity you know

Use animal numbers for manure, tonnes for solid feedstocks, and litres plus organic strength for wastewater. For an existing plant, start with measured gas flow. We translate that information into an indicative energy resource and identify the missing details.

Choose the pathway that fits

Wet, biodegradable resources may suit anaerobic digestion. Clean woody residues usually need a thermal pathway. Existing landfill or digester gas can be assessed for cleaning and use. The right product depends on the resource, local energy demand, buyers and infrastructure.

Where should I start in Australia?

Start with resources you can collect and measure: food-processing waste, concentrated effluent, manure from collection systems or an existing gas stream. Crop and wood residues can also support projects, but need their own seasonal supply and process assessment. National resource estimates show scale; your site's uncommitted supply determines the starting opportunity.

A project can start with one site or a regional cluster

A smaller source may suit onsite heat or electricity, or contribute to a shared project. Larger gas products need enough consistent supply and a credible delivery route.

Describe what you have, or what your project needs

A farmer may know the herd size; a collector may know weekly tonnes; a developer may be seeking supply rather than offering it. Record each material separately as Available or Needed, with its unit, time period, seasonal pattern and evidence. Keep animal numbers distinct from tonnes of collected manure.

Total waste generated is not the same as usable supply. Deduct material that cannot be collected, rejected contaminants, existing commitments and competing uses. Unknown quantities and quality remain information gaps, not zero.

Match the material before choosing a product

Wet biodegradable materials may suit digestion, while clean wood needs a separate thermal assessment and existing gas starts at gas cleaning. Fats, oils and grease need subtype-specific composition and yield evidence; they cannot inherit a universal food-waste factor.

Electricity and recovered heat can share a CHP route. Biomethane and recoverable CO₂ can be co-products, while BioLNG and methane-derived hydrogen need additional processing. Do not allocate the full resource to every alternative at once.

Could your resource connect to a regional opportunity?

A smaller resource may complement a receiving plant or nearby supplier. Start with compatible materials, genuinely available quantities, collection schedules and a useful local energy or product requirement, not simply neighbouring map pins.

Use your account to retain private resource information, then assess a pathway or request reviewed publication. Location and expressed interest support screening, not confirmed supply, a commercial match or a formed hub.

Frequently asked questions

Is there one minimum amount of waste?

No. Collection, feedstock quality, technology and the value of the output matter alongside quantity.

Can I make every product at once?

A project can split its gas between products, but each share must be accounted for. The full resource cannot be allocated to several energy products simultaneously.

Which Australian feedstocks are most available?

No current like-for-like national inventory ranks these categories by uncommitted, collectable supply. ARENA's 2021 Roadmap shows primary agricultural resources (over 1,000 PJ), organic wastes and residues (over 900 PJ) and forestry (over 500 PJ) as theoretical resources, including existing uses. Local supply decides the real starting point.

Sources and references

ARENA, Australia's Bioenergy Roadmap: resource availability appendix (2021)

DCCEEW, recovering organic waste

SADA, Feedpads and Contained Housing Guidelines

European Commission CORDIS, VALORGAS project reporting

Forest Research (UK), typical calorific values of fuels

Explore each feedstock type

Indicative operating-day examples

Indicative screening example. Actual output depends on feedstock testing, collection, plant design and operating conditions. CHP electricity and heat are one route; hydrogen and BioLNG are alternatives and cannot be added to the CHP or biomethane figures.

Find my starting point

Save your quantities, location and evidence gaps privately. Nothing is published without your consent and Admin review.