scope:

This guideline covers biological waste treatment facilities designed for a maximum throughput capacity of approx. 6000 Mg/h. The feedstock processed in such facilities is biodegradable (biogenic) waste such as green waste and source-separated biowaste.

Biogenic wastes in terms of this guideline are organic wastes according to Annex 1 of the German Biowaste Ordinance [G6] (e.g. source-separated organic waste streams from kitchens and households, waste from garden and park maintenance, bark and organic waste from food and convenience foodstuff production and similar). Also covered by this guideline are facilities processing special organics-containing waste streams (such as screenings, infrastructure waste and similar) for reuse (e.g. in land restoration).

The information given in this guidelines also applies, mutatis mutandis, to the composting and anaerobic digestion of sewage sludge in accordance with the German Sewage Sludge Ordinance [G10].

Anaerobic digestion facilities designed for throughput capacities below 6000 Mg/a are frequently agricultural co-digestion plants. Current reference parameters for the capacity of agricultural co-digestion facilities are the waste volume processed and the dry matter content of the co-processed liquid feedstock, e.g. animal slurry.

This guideline does not apply to

• mixed solid waste/residual waste treatment facilities used to optimize the landfilling and/or final disposal of wastes (see VDI 3475 Part 3, in preparation) nor to
• composting and anaerobic digestion systems operated by agricultural, horticultural or land restoration facilities for the on-site use of biowaste of plant origin in terms of the German Biowaste Ordinance [G6], even though the scientific findings presented in this guideline are basically applicable to such systems as well.