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Energy Potential of Greenhouse Plant Residue: The Cases of Turkey and Poland
The search for waste management opportunities is crucial for achieving environmentally friendly waste practices and ensuring the country’s energy security. This research aimed to valorize biomass and waste generated in greenhouses and to analyze the potential for electricity production from this waste. The analyses compared the situations in Turkey and Poland, where greenhouse production of vegetables is developing and constitutes an important link in agricultural activities, despite differences in climatic conditions. The cultivation of vegetables and flowers under cover is rapidly expanding in both countries and, with changing climatic conditions, is expected to shape the future of agriculture. In addition to estimating the energy that can be obtained, the study also evaluated the economic benefits of such a solution and the volume of avoided CO2 emissions from fossil fuels. The issue of utilizing these wastes is significant because current methods of their management do not lead to energy production, so their considerable energy potential is wasted, as highlighted in this study. Moreover, there is a lack of similar studies in the literature. The plant species chosen as materials in this study were tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, watermelon, and melon in the case of Turkey. For Poland, the analysis was conducted for tomatoes and greenhouse cucumbers. These crops represent the largest cultivated areas under cover in the respective countries. Results indicated that the average yearly amount of vegetable residue is approximately 463 thousand Mg in Turkey, and 77 thousand Mg in Poland. The estimated annual electricity potential is 430 GWh in Turkey and 80 GWh in Poland. Considering the efficiency of power generation in a typical power plant, the real amount of electricity to be obtained is 0.46 MWh per Mg of waste in Turkey and 0.52 MWh in Poland.
The Benefits of Green Roofs and Possibilities for Their Application in Antalya, Turkey
Rapid population growth, urbanization, and industrialization have many negative environmental effects. These adverse effects are felt more in urban areas than in rural areas. Considering the high rate of urban development, the idea that green roof structures can be used on rooftops is important in reducing the current negative effects. In addition, water retention on these roof areas can be helpful in the face of drought periods. In this study, the amount of water that can be retained on a 100 m2 roof area in Antalya Province, Turkey was calculated. As a result, it was determined that August is the month when the least water can be retained due to rainfall. It was calculated that between 0.168 m3 and 0.363 m3 of water can be retained in August. Furthermore, the month in which the most water can be retained due to rainfall is December, and the amounts of water that can be retained are between 5.762 m3 and 21.640 m3. These calculated values are anticipated to be important in understanding how much water can be retained in the planned green roofs. In addition, it has been determined that the energy savings that can be made for heating purposes in a 100 m2 green roof area can be between 3900 kWh and 11,250 kWh.