A Feasibility Report to Assesses the Potential of

Implementing a Carbon Project at the Geo Pomona

Landfill site

By

Compiled by Dr. Alick Muvundika

Environmental/Climate Specialist

Septrember,2025
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
A short feasibility assessment was conducted to assesses the potential of implementing a
carbon project at the Geo Pomona landfill site located in the city of Harare in Zimbabwe. The
information will help make an informed decision on whether to go ahead and implement a
carbon project at the site as a way of mitigating greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) at the
landfill site. GHG emissions arise from the degradation of the organic fraction deposited at the
landfill site. Results show that, as waste is deposited at the landfill site, GHG emissions will
continue to rise from 346,370 tons CO2eq in year 1 to 1,570,967tonsCO2eq in year 5 of the
landfill’s operation. Therefore, the waste-to-energy plant being proposed is one option of
reducing GHG emissions from the landfill site as organic waste responsible for GHG emissions
will stop or at least be reduced drastically from being deposited at the landfill site. With such
a plant in place, the Company will be assured of an additional stream of income through
carbon credits, in addition to the sale of 16-22MW of electricity that will be produced from
the waste-to-energy plant.

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Table of Contents
1.0 Introduction .................................................................................................................. iv
1.1 How Landfill Carbon Projects Works ......................................................................... iv
2.0 Geo Pomona Landfill Site ............................................................................................... v
2.1 Waste Arisings ............................................................................................................ v
2.2 Estimation of GHG (methane) Emissions from Geo Pomona Landfill site using First
Order Decay Method ........................................................................................................... vii

List of Figures
Figure 1: Monthly waste arisings at the landfill site for the year 2023 .................................... vi
Figure 2: Monthly waste arisings at the landfill site for the year 2024 .................................... vi

List of Tables
Table 1: Location Coordinates for the Landfill site ..................................................................... v
Table 2: Summary of total amounts of waste generated in each sector in tonnes per week
(Source: City of Solid Waste Characterisation Report, 2020) .................................................. vii

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1.0 Introduction
This short feasibility report assesses the potential of implementing a carbon credit project at
the Geo Pomona landfill site located in the city of Harare in Zimbabwe. This information will
help make an informed decision on whether to go ahead and implement a carbon project at
the site as a way of mitigating greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) at the landfill site. Since waste
is one of the sectors identified in Zimbabwe’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC),
reducing GHG emissions from the landfill site will contribute to the global efforts aimed at
tackling climate change under the Paris Agreement.

A carbon credit project at a landfill involves installing systems to capture landfill gas (LFG) – a
mixture of methane and carbon dioxide, which is a potent greenhouse gas. By capturing and
destroying or converting the methane, the project reduces emissions, with each ton of carbon
dioxide (CO2) equivalent avoided or converted and thereby generating a carbon credit.

These credits, a form of climate finance, can be traded on carbon markets, providing revenue
that supports the landfill’s operation as there will be an additional stream of income for the
operator in addition to the income that comes through from the charges on waste arisings
deposited at the landfill site. Such additional revenue can support the landfill’s operation and
incentivizes further greenhouse gas reduction.

1.1 How Landfill Carbon Projects Works

Each ton of CO2 equivalent that is destroyed or avoided through a carbon project is verified
and issued as a carbon credit. These credits are then sold on national or international carbon
markets, providing a crucial revenue stream for the project and its developers.

Benefits of implementing a carbon project at a landfill site are many and these include:

(i) reducing the amount of potent greenhouse gases, particularly methane,

released into the atmosphere contributing to global warming.;

(ii) projects can generate electricity and other forms of energy, replacing fossil
fuels and other unsustainable energy sources;

(iii) such projects often lead to improvements in the surrounding local

environmental quality and can also create jobs for the local people; and

(iv) carbon projects at landfill sites can generate carbon credits which provides a
financial incentive for developing and maintaining these crucial emission
reduction projects.

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2.0 Geo Pomona Landfill Site
The Geo Pomona landfill site is located approximately 10.5 km to the North - Northeast of
Harare city. It is the largest landfill in the city of Harare. The site is located in a non-residential
area on a flat area, with a moderate slope and a height above sea level of +1515 to +1527
meter on the geographical coordinates shown in Table 1 below.

Table 1: Location Coordinates for the Landfill site

Geographical coordinates
17°43'38.54"S 31° 4'14.84"E
17°43'23.82"S 31° 4'49.27"E
17°44'0.17"S 31° 4'15.91"E
17°43'48.88"S 31° 4'53.35"E

The landfill is fully engineered and managed with a total area of 75 hectares. Of this total area,
15 ha is an old area and 150,000m2 of this is encapsulated. The area has a water treatment
plant for treating leachate.

The landfill site is run by Geo Pomona Waste Management (Pvt) Ltd. The Company formally
commenced its direct operational involvement in municipal waste collection within the City
of Harare in February, 2025.

2.1 Waste Arisings

Figures 1 & 2 shows waste received at the Geo Pomona landfill site for the years 2023 and
2024, respectively. On average, based on the years 2023 and 2024, the landfill site receives
approximately 122,176.60 tons of waste annually and of this total, 63% is organic or
biodegradable, which is a problem. It is a problem because the anaerobic decomposition of
organic matter in landfills, particularly managed sites such as the Geo Pomona landfill site,
produces methane, a potent greenhouse gas with a global warming potential (GWP) of
approximately 28-36 times that of CO2 over a 100-year period.

Although landfills also produce carbon dioxide, which is a GHG, methane is the gas of primary
concern because CO2 produced in landfills is biogenic, originating from the decomposition of
organic waste and as such, biogenic CO2 is not typically included in GHG inventories due to its
short carbon cycle.

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Figure 1: Monthly waste arisings at the landfill site for the year 2023

Figure 2: Monthly waste arisings at the landfill site for the year 2024

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Table 2: Summary of total amounts of waste generated in each sector in tonnes per week (Source: City of Solid Waste
Characterisation Report, 2020)

2.2 Estimation of GHG (methane) Emissions from Geo Pomona

Landfill site using First Order Decay Method
Greenhouse gas emissions (mostly methane) have been estimated from the Geo Pomona
landfill site using the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Waste Model called
the First Order Decay Model (FOD). To estimate methane emissions from a landfill using the
FOD method, a tiered approach is typically used, with the IPCC Waste Model being a standard
method. The FOD model accounts for the gradual decomposition of waste over decades,
resulting in a peak in methane emissions that declines over time as the organic carbon is
consumed.

The FOD method estimates annual methane emissions using the following general equation:

Where:

• CH4 Emissions T is the total annual methane emitted in year T

• CH4 Generated x,T is the methane generated from waste in year x that decays in year
T

• RT is any methane recovered in year T (e.g., for flaring or energy generation)

• OX is the oxidation factor accounting for methane that is oxidized by bacteria in the
soil cover. A default value of 0.1 is often used for managed landfill sites such as Geo
Pomona.

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The methane generated from waste deposited in year X that decays in year T is calculated by
using the decay function:

Where:

• K is the methane generation rate constant (i/year) which depends on moisture

content, waste composition, and temperature.

• L0 is the potential methane generation capacity (m3 per megagram (Mg) or ton), which
is based on the degradable organic carbon content of the waste.

• Wx is the mass of waste deposited in year X (in tons).

• is the exponential decay function, where (T-X) is the time since waste
was deposited.

Calculating methane emissions at Geo Pomona landfill:

Type of landfill site: A managed landfill site receiving municipal solid waste (MSW)/year.

Assumptions and Parameters:

▪ Waste disposal rate: 122,176.60 tons of MSW/year. But of this 63% is

biodegradable i.e., 76,971.30 tons (Wx = 76,971.30 tons/year)
▪ Methane generation potential (Lo) for the site: We use the default value of
100m3/ton
▪ Methane generation rate constant (k): We assume a typical value of K= 0.05/year
since Geo Pomona is a properly managed landfill site
▪ Oxidative factor (OX): We assume 10% of generated methane is oxidized: Ox =
0.1
▪ Methane recovery (RT): We assume RT to be zero since there is no gas recovery
systems in place yet at the landfill site

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NB: We assume an operation period of 5 years (Crediting period of 5 years as a carbon credit
project). Therefore, for each year of operation (T=1 to T=5), we must sum the contributions of
all previous waste deposits.

STEP1: Calculate CH4 generated at Geo Pomona landfill site for each year of waste

▪ Year 1 (T=1): Waste was deposited in year 1 (X=1)

CH4 Generated 1,1 = Kx Lo x W1 X e-K (1-1)

= 0.05 X 100 X 76,971.30 X e0

= 384,856.50 tons

▪
Year 2 (T=2): Methane is generated from waste deposited in year 1 (x=1) and
year 2(x=2)
CH4 Generated 1,2 = Kx Lo x W1 X e-K (2-1)
=0.05x100x76,971.30 x e-0.05 (2-1)
= 366,086.83tons

CH4 Generated 2,2 = Kx Lo x W1 X e-K (2-1)

=0.05x100x76,971.30 x e-0.05 (2-2)
= 384,856.50tons
Total CH4 Generated 2 = 366,086.83 +384,856.50 = 750,943.33

▪ Year 3 (T=3): Methane is generated from waste deposited in years 1,2&3:

CH4 Generated 1,3 = 384,856.50 x e-0.05 (3-1) =348,232.56

CH4 Generated 2,3 = 384,856.50 x e-0.05 (3-2) =36648,232.56
CH4 Generated 3,3 = 384,856.50 x e-0.05 (3-3) =384,856.50

Total CH4 Generated = 348,232.56+366,086.83+384,856.56 = 1,099,175.95

▪ Year 4 (T=4): Methane is generated from waste deposited in years 1,2,3&4:

CH4 Generated 1,4 = 384,856.50 x e-0.15 = 331, 249
CH4 Generated 2,3 = 384,856.50 x e-0.10 = 348,232.56
CH4 Generated 3,3 = 384,856.50 x e-0.05 = 366,086.83
CH4 Generated 4,3 = 384,856.50 x e-0 = 384,856.50

Total CH4 Generated = 331,249+348,232.56+366,086.83+384,856.50= 1,430,424.90

▪ Year 5 (T=5): Methane is generated from waste deposited in years 1,2,3,4&5:

CH4 Generated 1,5 = 384,856.50 x e-0.20 = 315,093.85

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CH4 Generated 2,5 = 384,856.50 x e-0.15 = 331,249.10
CH4 Generated 3,5 = 384,856.50 x e-0.1 = 348,232.56
CH4 Generated 4,5 = 384,856.50 x e-0 .05 = 366,086.83
CH4 Generated 5 = 384,856.50 x e-0 = 384,856.50

TotalCH4 Generated = 315,093.85+331,249.10+348,232.56+366,086.83+384,856.50 =

1,745,519

STEP2: Calculating annual CH4 emissions

Using the formula below:

▪ Year1: CH4 Emissions1 = (384,856.50-0) x (1-0.1) = 346,370.85 tons

▪ Year2: CH4 Emissions2 = (750,943.33-0) x (1-0.1) = 675,849 tons

▪ Year3: CH4 Emissions3 = (1,099,175.95-0) x (1-0.1) = 989,257.50 tons

▪ Year4: CH4 Emissions4 = (1,430,424.90-0) x (1-0.1) = 1,287,382.41tons

▪ Year5: CH4 Emissions1 = (1,745,519-0) x (1-0.1) = 1,570,967.10 tons

Results interpretation

The estimates shows that methane emissions will increase each year as new waste is added
to the Geo Pomona landfill site. If the landfill were to stop accepting waste after Year 5 or
indeed any other year during the 5-year period, the model would predict that emissions would
gradually decrease over time as the degradable organic carbon is consumed, reflecting the
characteristic decay curve of the FOD model

Therefore, the waste-to-energy plant being proposed is one option of reducing GHG emissions
from the landfill site as organic waste responsible for GHG emissions will stop or at least be
reduced drastically from being deposited at the landfill site. With such a plant in place, the
Company will be assured of an additional stream of income through carbon credits, in addition
to the sale of 16-22MW of electricity that will be produced from the waste-to-energy plant.

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