Bio-energy potential of available livestock waste and surplus agriculture crop residue: An analysis of 602 rural districts of India

The majority of households in rural India use cow dung and crop residue for cooking, which contributes to both indoor and outdoor air pollution. After being used for cooking and other agricultural purposes, surplus crop residue left uncollected and burned openly accountable for notorious air pollution episodes in India. Air pollution and clean energy are critical challenges in India. Utilizing locally available biomass waste can be a sustainable solution to reducing air pollution and energy poverty. However, formulating any such policy and its practical implementation requires a clear understanding of currently available resources. The current study presents the first district-scale analysis of the cooking energy potential of locally available biomass (livestock and crop waste) if converted to energy by anaerobic digestion processes for 602 rural districts. The analysis indicates that rural India needs 1927TJ/day (2.75 MJ/capita-day) energy to meet the cooking energy demand. Utilizing locally available livestock waste can generate 715 TJ/day (1.02 MJ/capita-day) of energy, equivalent to 37 % of the demand. Only 2.15 % of districts have 100 % potential for cooking energy demand by utilizing locally produced livestock waste. Using surplus crop residue for energy can provide 2296 TJ/day(3.27 MJ/capita-day) of energy. If locally utilized, surplus residue can meet 100 % of energy demand in 39 % of districts. Combining livestock waste and surplus residue can produce 3011 TJ/day(4.29 MJ/capita-day) of energy, fulfilling >100 % of energy demand in 55.6 % of rural districts. Furthermore, converting agricultural waste into clean energy has the potential to reduce PM2.5 emissions by 33 % to 85 % in different scenarios. [Display omitted] •District-scale analysis of available biomass potential for energy generation in India•Available surplus crop residue can fulfill 100 % cooking energy demands of rural India.•Only livestock waste has the potential to fulfill 37 % cooking energy demand of rural India.•Agricultural waste to clean energy can cut PM2.5 by 33–85 % in various scenarios.