Landfill gas in Turkey. Methane from rubbish, turned into electricity.

Why Turkey

More than 90% of the waste produced in Turkey ends up in landfill.

Landfill waste does not just sit there. It is slowly broken down by organic processes, and as that happens it gives off methane. Left alone, that gas seeps into the air.

This project is at one such site: the Kayseri Molu landfill in Kayseri. Ecologi describes it as a large-scale project working on landfill that already exists, not on a new site.

Why methane matters

Methane is a greenhouse gas. It does not last in the atmosphere as long as carbon dioxide does, but while it is there it traps much more heat. Ecologi’s page describes it as at least 28 times stronger than carbon dioxide.

The page also gives two wider estimates. Methane is thought to be responsible for more than a third of today’s warming caused by people. And landfill sites are among the largest sources of methane in the world, releasing about 12 percent of the global total.

So stopping methane at a landfill site is a direct way to slow warming. It is also a waste to let it escape, because methane burns and can be used as fuel.

How the project cuts emissions

The project collects the gas coming off the landfill and uses it to generate electricity. That electricity is fed into Turkey’s national grid. This cuts emissions in two ways.

• It stops methane escaping. The gas is captured at the landfill and burned for power, so it does not reach the atmosphere as methane.
• It replaces fossil fuel power. Each unit of electricity made from landfill gas is one that takes the place of fossil fuel power in the grid.

What it adds up to

Ecologi’s page estimates that the project cuts emissions by around 100,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent each year. The page does not put a date on that estimate, and it does not publish a running record of results, so we cannot give a dated total for the project.

There are local benefits too. Collecting the gas means less nuisance from smell. It also lowers the risk of fires and explosions at the landfill.

Ecologi links the project to three of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: clean and affordable energy, decent work and economic growth, and climate action.

How the project is checked

We do not choose or run the projects ourselves. They are selected by Ecologi, and this one carries Ecologi’s “Carbon Project Ecologi Approved” mark.

It is also certified by an outside body. Ecologi states that the project is verified by the Gold Standard, and links to the Gold Standard registry, a public list of certified projects.

Ecologi’s page does not name the company that developed or operates the project, so we do not name one here.

What Printlogik has funded here

Ecologi’s public record names this project among those that Printlogik’s contributions have gone to through the Print A Tree Project. Ecologi does not publish a figure for how much carbon we have funded at each project, so we cannot give one for Kayseri.

What Ecologi does publish is our total across all the carbon projects we have supported. That total is shown on the Print A Tree page.

Ecologi now lists this project as previously funded, which means it is no longer taking contributions for it. Every order we print still makes a contribution through Ecologi, and that goes to the projects it supports today.

How your order gets here

1. You order printAny order, of any size. There is nothing to tick and nothing extra to pay.
2. We make a contributionEach invoice triggers a contribution from Printlogik to Ecologi.
3. Emissions are cutEcologi funds projects like this one, and records what we have funded in public.

The UN global goals it supports

The United Nations has set 17 Sustainable Development Goals for a fairer, healthier planet by 2030. Ecologi records this project as supporting 3 of them.

• 7Affordable and clean energy
• 8Decent work and economic growth
• 13Climate action

Where it is

Kayseri, Turkey · 38.7°N, 35.5°E

Location	Kayseri, Turkey
Type of project	Landfill gas capture
Status	Ecologi lists it as previously funded and no longer takes contributions for it
Full record	See it on Ecologi