Rivalea Bungowannah Piggery Biogas Project

The Rivalea Bungowannah Piggery Biogas Project is an emissions avoidance project located in the locality of Bungowannah, New South Wales. The facility is situated approximately 15 kilometres northwest of the major regional centre of Albury, near the border of Victoria. Registered in January 2013, the project operates within the Riverina region, a significant agricultural hub known for extensive livestock grazing, cropping, and irrigation schemes along the Murray River.

The project operates under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative, Animal Effluent Management) Methodology Determination 2019, having transitioned from earlier variations of the "Destruction of Methane Generated from Manure in Piggeries" methods in 2020. In standard piggeries, manure is treated in anaerobic lagoons which naturally release methane, a potent greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere. This project involves the installation of covered anaerobic lagoons to capture this biogas. The captured methane is then combusted, converting it into carbon dioxide (which has a significantly lower global warming potential). While some similar Rivalea projects generate electricity, the primary abatement mechanism here is the destruction of methane that would otherwise vent into the atmosphere.

Environmentally, the Bungowannah region experiences a temperate climate with moderate rainfall, typically averaging between 600mm and 700mm annually. The landscape consists of riverine plains featuring red-brown earths and clay loam soils, which are ideal for the construction of the large earthen lagoons required for effluent management.

A significant corporate development for this project occurred in early 2022 when the proponent, JBS Pork Australia Pty Ltd, completed the acquisition of Rivalea Holdings. Rivalea was previously owned by the Singapore-based QAF Limited and stands as one of Australia’s largest vertically integrated pork producers. The Bungowannah site is distinct from Rivalea's larger Corowa operations but remains a key part of their regional environmental compliance strategy, holding specific EPA licenses for effluent irrigation and management.