Pavilion Farms Anakie Anaerobic Digestion Project

Pavilion Farms Anakie Anaerobic Digestion Project is an alternative waste treatment project located at Anakie, approximately 30km northwest of Geelong in Victoria. It was registered in June 2022, and while the exact project area is unspecified, the new facility is being constructed on land adjacent to Pavilion Farms' existing large-scale broiler chicken growing operations.

Alternative waste treatment projects under the Carbon Farming Initiative methodology involve diverting mixed solid waste away from landfills and processing the material in specialised facilities to prevent harmful atmospheric methane emissions. For this specific project, organic agricultural waste and chicken litter are processed through large, enclosed anaerobic digesters. The resulting biogas is then safely captured and combusted.

The Anakie area is situated in the Corangamite catchment region across the Victorian volcanic plains. The predominant land uses in this region are largely dedicated to agricultural operations such as mixed farming, livestock grazing, and cropping. The local environment features a temperate climate with a moderate average annual rainfall of roughly 450 to 550 mm, and the landscape is heavily characterised by soils consisting of basalt rock and clay loams.

An interesting note is that Pavilion Farms is one of Australia's largest broiler chicken producers, growing approximately 15 million birds annually. By embracing circular agriculture, the facility expects to transform 29,700 tonnes of annual waste into 21,000 MWh of renewable electricity, enough to power the farm and supply the grid, alongside producing over 6,000 tonnes of high-nutrient organic fertiliser. To streamline the management of this new waste-to-energy facility, the project proponent was varied from Northmore Gordon Pty Ltd to Pavilion Biogas Pty Ltd in June 2023. Furthermore, the Victorian Environment Protection Authority (EPA) officially granted a development licence for the construction of the facility in December 2023.