T24 waste exemption: anaerobic digestion at premises used for agriculture and burning resulting biogas
The T24 exemption allows farmers to anaerobically digest manure, slurry and vegetation on their farms to produce digestate for use as fertiliser or soil conditioner.
Applies to England
The anaerobic digestion (AD) process also produces biogas, which can be burnt to generate energy, either to use on the farm or to export to the National Grid.
Types of activity you can carry out
These include:
- anaerobic digestion of manure and plant tissue waste in a dedicated AD plant to produce a digestate
- burning the biogas to produce energy to provide power on your farm or to export to the National Grid
- sorting, screening, cutting, shredding, pulverising and chipping the waste to help the AD process
Types of activity you cannot carry out
You cannot:
- dispose of the biogas by flaring except if appliances burning biogas break down or when they are being maintained
- dispose of the biogas by venting it to the atmosphere
- compost the manure and plant tissue (if you want to do this, you need to register exemption T23 – Aerobic composting)
- spread the digestate produced under this exemption (see related exemptions)
Types of waste you can treat
The waste codes are those listed in the List of Wastes (LoW) Regulations. You need to make sure your waste fits within the relevant waste code and description.
| Waste code | Type of waste |
|---|---|
| 020103, 020107, 170506, 200201 | Plant tissue waste |
| 020106 | Horse and farmyard manure, slurry only |
| 020199 | Fully biodegradable animal bedding |
Quantity of waste you can treat
You can store or treat up to 1,250 cubic metres of waste at any one time.
This storage limit does not include manure and slurry pits where these materials have been produced on the same farm and are being stored before being treated in the digester.
If you import manure and slurry from other farms and store it before it is fed into your AD plant, the storage of this waste is included within the 1,250 cubic metre limit.
When manure and slurry is mixed with plant tissue waste the 1,250 cubic metre limit will include the storage of plant tissue waste, material in the digester and the storage of the resulting digestate.
Key conditions
You must:
- keep the waste in the digester for at least 28 days
- collect and burn the biogas produced by the AD process to produce energy
- use a net rated thermal input of less than 0.4MW on the AD plant biogas burner
- have a combined net rated thermal input of less than 0.4MW if there is more than one burner associated with the AD plant
Other things you need to know
Anaerobic digestion is different from composting. The AD process involves decomposing waste in an atmosphere with no oxygen and it requires a purpose-built plant.
Once the AD process is completed it produces a digestate.
If the only waste feedstock to the anaerobic digestion process is farmyard manure or slurry, we accept that the digestate can be spread on agricultural land as a fertiliser or soil conditioner without being regulated as waste. However, you still need to comply with the code of good agricultural practice and any requirements for Nitrate Vulnerable Zones.
Related exemptions
T23 – aerobic composting and associated prior treatment.
T25 – anaerobic digestion at premises not used for agriculture and burning of resulting biogas.
U10 – spreading waste to benefit agricultural land.
U11 – spreading waste on non-agricultural land.
Register this exemption
You must register this exemption with the Environment Agency if you meet the requirements.
Related permits
If you cannot comply with the limits and quantities in this exemption you will need to apply for an environmental permit.
Definitions
Digestate – output from the treatment of organic and biodegradable waste by anaerobic digestion.
Net rated thermal input – the rate at which fuel can be burned at the maximum continuous rating of the appliance, multiplied by the net calorific value of the fuel and expressed as megawatts thermal.
Plant tissue waste – includes all materials of plant origin such as trees, shrubbery, branches with or without foliage, leaves or foliage wood and vegetation.