JBS Scone Wastewater Biogas Emission Reduction

JBS Scone Wastewater Biogas Emission Reduction is a wastewater biogas emission reduction project located at the JBS Australia abattoir in Scone, approximately 150km northwest of Newcastle in the Upper Hunter region of New South Wales. It was registered in January 2022 and while the exact spatial area is not publicly delineated, the project footprint is confined to the industrial wastewater lagoons of the facility.

The project operates under the Domestic, Commercial and Industrial Wastewater methodology. This methodology involves treating industrial wastewater to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by installing anaerobic digesters. These digesters capture biogas, primarily methane, generated from the organic decay of wastewater. The captured biogas is then combusted or flared, converting the potent methane into less impactful carbon dioxide, and in many cases displacing fossil fuel usage.

The Scone area is famously known as the "horse capital of Australia" and the region is heavily characterised by broadacre agriculture, primarily beef cattle and sheep grazing alongside equine operations. The region experiences a moderate climate, typically receiving between 600-700mm of rainfall annually. Soils in the surrounding Upper Hunter river valleys are largely fertile alluvial loams, transitioning to Chromosols, Dermosols, and Vertosols in the broader grazing lands.

Specifically, this project replaces the site's previous deep open anaerobic lagoons with covered anaerobic digesters. Working in partnership with bioenergy developer Energy360, JBS installed gas-tight pond covers over the lagoons to capture the biogas that was historically released into the atmosphere. The captured biogas is now combusted as a renewable heat source, reducing the facility's reliance on liquefied natural gas (LNG). Commissioned in mid-2024, the bioenergy system is expected to eliminate approximately 23,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions annually. Additionally, the project's method was updated to methodology compilation No. 3 in March 2025.