Translations Best practice in French version Best practice in English version

The TAMIE ABBEY recycles the biogas from its cheese dairy

4. Environment

Waste management

Context

The abbey is located in the Bauges mountains (73) and has a cheese dairy that processes 4,000 liters milk day and thus produces 400kg cheese, inducing 4m3 whey and 8m3 white water, that is to say 12m3 trade effluents to process or to eliminate.

Objectives

- Reducing transport costs

- Recycling trade effluents on site

- Reducing sludge and pollution in the soil.

APPROACH

In 1990’s, the abbey stocked the whey at 12km from its site to sell it to a recycling channel, and it clarified white water on site and spreaded the sludge in the soil. The trade effluent became costly after a decrease in the whey purchase money and an increase in the transport cost.

In 2002, a survey was conducted in association with the Institut Technique Français du Fromage, and the abbey built a methanization plant in 2003 as a result, to process 1,000m3 whey and 2,000m3 white water a year.

The process is done in a combined area:

-    The trade effluents (white water and whey) are collected in a 24m2 settling tank to acidify them
-    A USB reactor (Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket) eliminates the solid residues converted in granules by carrying out an aeroflotation
-    A methanisor favours the germ destruction without the oxygen from organic materials and produces biogas with 60% methan for the boiler of the abbey (60kw). It runs between 15 and17h a day and produces hot, healthy water to supply 60 to 80 persons.
-    The liquid is reoxygenated when coming out, making it biodegradable before it goes back to the settling tank and is disposed of in the soil ; COD is measured.
Three cheese dairies from Doubs and Jura have already implemented the device, as it has been a success in the abbey.

CONTRIBUTION TO COMPANY PERFORMANCE

- 7.30 euros are being saved as equivalent to a m3 whey

- The abbey has developed a specific know-how and is getting famous for that.

Benefits

- Reduction in transport required to get the effluents processed

-  Reduction in energy consumption

- Reduction in the sludge and effluents in the soil

- It has been an example for other cheese dairies located far from the recycling channels.

Country
France

Mise à jour le 30/05/2016

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