The Use of Biodigesters in the Treatment
of Swine Manure in Southern Brazil:
An Analysis of an R&D Project
from the Perspective of the WEF Nexus
Ruy de Castro Sobrosa Neto, Alexandro Luiz da Silva,
Janayna Sobrosa Maia, Nei Antonio Nunes, Jacir Leonir Casagrande,
and José Baltazar Salgueirinho Osório de Andrade Guerra
Abstract In 2008, the largest federal state company in the southern region of Brazil,
Eletrosul, carried out the Alto Uruguai Project. This entailed 10 Canadian-type
biodigesters, which were installed for the treatment of swine manure in Itapiranga
County (located in the western region of Santa Catarina). In 2012, the Brazilian Electricity Regulatory Agency (ANEEL), through the Law 9.991/2000 (which promotes
research and development initiatives in Brazil), launched a strategic R&D call. This
targeted technical and commercial studies aspirating for the insertion of electricity
generation from biogas (which arises from waste and liquid effluents in the Brazilian
Energy Matrix). Eletrosul participated with a project that aimed to interconnect all the
properties of the Santa Fé Baixa Line. The present was benefited by the Alto Uruguai
Project, through a pipeline network and fiber-optic communication to a 480 kVAinstalled capacity miniature thermoelectric power plant (MCT). Other large biodigesters were also built with the following materials: wood, concrete, stainless steel
and slate stone. In this way, different technologies of biodigesters, and in different
sizes, were built. This article aims to analyze, from the perspective of the water,
energy and food nexus (WEF nexus), how the dimensions of sustainability can be
met, providing opportunities for social, economic and environmental development
for the region where the project was developed.
R. de Castro Sobrosa Neto · J. S. Maia (B) · J. B. S. O. de Andrade Guerra
Center for Sustainable Development, University of Southern Santa Catarina (UNISUL), Rua
Adolfo Melo 34, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil
J. B. S. O. de Andrade Guerra
e-mail: baltazar.guerra@unisul.br
R. de Castro Sobrosa Neto · A. L. da Silva
CGT Eletrosul, Rua Deputado Antônio Edu Vieira, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina 999, Brazil
N. A. Nunes · J. L. Casagrande
University of Southern Santa Catarina (UNISUL), Rua Adolfo Melo 34, Florianópolis, Santa
Catarina, Brazil
e-mail: nei.nunes@unisul.br
J. L. Casagrande
e-mail: jacir.casagrande@unisul.br
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
S. S. Muthu (ed.), The Water–Energy–Food Nexus,
Environmental Footprints and Eco-design of Products and Processes,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-0239-9_4
97
of Swine Manure in Southern Brazil:
An Analysis of an R&D Project
from the Perspective of the WEF Nexus
Ruy de Castro Sobrosa Neto, Alexandro Luiz da Silva,
Janayna Sobrosa Maia, Nei Antonio Nunes, Jacir Leonir Casagrande,
and José Baltazar Salgueirinho Osório de Andrade Guerra
Abstract In 2008, the largest federal state company in the southern region of Brazil,
Eletrosul, carried out the Alto Uruguai Project. This entailed 10 Canadian-type
biodigesters, which were installed for the treatment of swine manure in Itapiranga
County (located in the western region of Santa Catarina). In 2012, the Brazilian Electricity Regulatory Agency (ANEEL), through the Law 9.991/2000 (which promotes
research and development initiatives in Brazil), launched a strategic R&D call. This
targeted technical and commercial studies aspirating for the insertion of electricity
generation from biogas (which arises from waste and liquid effluents in the Brazilian
Energy Matrix). Eletrosul participated with a project that aimed to interconnect all the
properties of the Santa Fé Baixa Line. The present was benefited by the Alto Uruguai
Project, through a pipeline network and fiber-optic communication to a 480 kVAinstalled capacity miniature thermoelectric power plant (MCT). Other large biodigesters were also built with the following materials: wood, concrete, stainless steel
and slate stone. In this way, different technologies of biodigesters, and in different
sizes, were built. This article aims to analyze, from the perspective of the water,
energy and food nexus (WEF nexus), how the dimensions of sustainability can be
met, providing opportunities for social, economic and environmental development
for the region where the project was developed.
R. de Castro Sobrosa Neto · J. S. Maia (B) · J. B. S. O. de Andrade Guerra
Center for Sustainable Development, University of Southern Santa Catarina (UNISUL), Rua
Adolfo Melo 34, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil
J. B. S. O. de Andrade Guerra
e-mail: baltazar.guerra@unisul.br
R. de Castro Sobrosa Neto · A. L. da Silva
CGT Eletrosul, Rua Deputado Antônio Edu Vieira, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina 999, Brazil
N. A. Nunes · J. L. Casagrande
University of Southern Santa Catarina (UNISUL), Rua Adolfo Melo 34, Florianópolis, Santa
Catarina, Brazil
e-mail: nei.nunes@unisul.br
J. L. Casagrande
e-mail: jacir.casagrande@unisul.br
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2021
S. S. Muthu (ed.), The Water–Energy–Food Nexus,
Environmental Footprints and Eco-design of Products and Processes,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-0239-9_4
97