JBS Scone Wastewater Biogas Emission Reduction

JBS Scone Wastewater Biogas Emission Reduction is a wastewater emission reduction project located at the JBS beef processing facility in Scone, approximately 150km northwest of Newcastle in the Upper Hunter region of New South Wales. It was registered in January 2022 and covers the footprint of the plant's industrial wastewater treatment operations.

Domestic, Commercial and Industrial Wastewater projects involve reducing greenhouse gas emissions by changing the way organic wastewater is treated. This is standardly achieved by installing anaerobic digesters to replace traditional, deep open anaerobic lagoons. The biogas generated from the wastewater's breakdown, which is highly concentrated with methane, is captured by the digesters and combusted using a flaring device or heating system, destroying the methane before it can reach the atmosphere.

The Upper Hunter region surrounding Scone is famously known for cattle grazing, agriculture, and thoroughbred horse breeding. The area experiences moderate rainfall and its soils generally consist of rich alluvial deposits, clays, and basalts.

Developed with project agent Northmore Gordon Environmental and biogas specialists Energy360, this project involved encasing the Scone plant's wastewater lagoons with two massive gas-tight covers. Rather than simply flaring the captured biogas, JBS redirects it to be used as a renewable production heat source, directly substituting the facility's reliance on liquefied natural gas (LNG). This circular bioenergy system was fully activated in mid-2024 and is expected to eliminate approximately 23,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions annually, while also generating Energy Savings Certificates (ESCs) alongside ACCUs. In March 2025, the project updated its methodology to Compilation No. 3 of the 2015 Wastewater Determination.