MGE Regulatory

APPLYING EU DIRECTIVES, REGULATIONS AND GUIDELINES TO BIOPOWER’s

RECEPTION, TREATMENT AND TRANSFORMATION OF ANIMAL BY-PRODUCTS (
RENDERED FATS OF CATEGORIES 1 TO 3) INTO A SUITABLE BIOFUEL FOR DIESEL
INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES PRODUCING ENERGY.

1 SCOPE 2

2 SUMMARY 2

3 TECHNICAL BACKGROUND 2

3.1 OILS AND FATS 2

3.1.1 CHEMICAL STRUCTURE OF OILS AND FATS 2
3.1.2 CHEMISTRY OF OILS AND FATS 4
3.1.3 PRODUCTION OF FUELS 5
3.2 COMBUSTION AND INCINERATION 5
3.3 FUELS FOR AUTO-IGNITION COMBUSTION ENGINES AND INCINERATORS 6
3.4 TECHNICAL STEPS USED BY BIOPWER TO PRODUCE COMBUSTION ENGINE FUEL 7

4 NAVIGATING THE EU REGULATIONS 8

4.1 FUNDAMENTAL LEGAL DOCUMENTS RELATED TO ANIMAL PRODUCTS, WASTE AND ENERGY 8
4.2 FUNDAMENTAL DEFINITIONS IN EU REGULATIONS 9

5 WASTE OR PRODUCT 17

5.1 FROM THE WASTE PERSPECTIVE 17

5.2 FROM THE INDUSTIRIAL EMISSIONS’ PERSPECTIVE 19
5.3 FROM THE ANIMAL BY-PRODUCTS’ PERSPECTIVE (1069/2009 EC AND REGULATION 142/2001) 20

6 CONCLUSION 23

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1 SCOPE
This note addresses the issue of proper (technico-legal) understanding and application of EU
regulations related to some materials initially issued from animals and destined to fuel self-ignition
combustion engines at Biopower plant.

The Commission itself recognizes the specific difficulty in identifying which directive covers specific
operations when animal by-products are involved. It has even had to publish a Guidance on the
interpretation of key provisions of Directive 2008/98/EC on waste in June 2012.

2 SUMMARY
Product and Waste related directives end up sometimes focusing on identical materials. This generates
confusion and is often a source of difficulties. Materials issued from animal sources are covered by both
directive types, however not under the same conditions. There is thus a clear understanding to be
extracted from legal logic to avoid misinterpretation. In a nutshell, a material (such as fat) derived from
an animal that is destined be used as fuel in an auto-ignition engine to produce energy is not a waste,
its use is called combustion, not incineration. It is thus to be legally considered within the framework
of Animal by-products regulation (EC 1069/2009).

Users that use these products to produce energy are thus energy producing units using a product
called biofuel in an auto-ignition combustions engines. The use of the product is restricted to be fuel
for combustion engines (or to be transformed into biodiesel for the same engines)
These users are not subject to the Waste directives and are not to be considered as incinerators.

3 TECHNICAL BACKGROUND

3.1 OILS AND FATS

3.1.1 CHEMICAL STRUCTURE OF OILS AND FATS

Oils are present in animal and vegetable life forms. In everyday language, oil usually refers to oils with
vegetable origin and fat for animal origin; grease refers to oils that are solid at room temperature. All
Oils have the following generic chemical formula:

CH2-O-CO-R1
!
CH-O-CO-R2 formula 1
!
CH2-O-CO-R3

In which "C" represents a carbon atom, "H" hydrogen, "O" oxygen and the "Ri" are carbon chains of
various lengths containing 0, 1 or two double bonds (generic formula CxHy).

The generic formula of an oil is thus CxHyOz

One can also represent oils in a simpler form

GLY (FFA1, FFA2, FFA3) where GLY represents the Glycerin part (in black below)

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CH2-O-CO-R1
!
CH-O-CO-R2 formula 1’
!
CH2-O-CO-R3

And FFA1 or 2 or 3 represents the Free fatty acid parts 1, 2 and 3 (in green above).

The difference between oils (olive, palm, peanut, lard, tallow, etc. ..) generally lies in the nature of
chains "Ri" and their relative proportions.

Ri-COOH are called fatty acids, they contain a min of 10 and up to 22 carbon atoms. For example,
Palmitic acid, the most present fatty acid in palm oil has a formula:

CH3-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-COOH.

Technical representation of fatty acids is usually done by referring to the number of carbon atoms,
followed by the number of double bonds. Palmitic Acid is thus referred to as 16:0

Some fatty acids contain one or two double bonds for example palmitoleic acid (16:1) has one :

CH3-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH=CH-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-COOH

And linoleic acid (18:2) which was firstly isolated from linseed oil has two:

CH3-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2- CH=CH-CH2-CH=CH-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-CH2-COOH

In terms of physical properties, the longer the "R" chains and the fewer double bonds they contain, the
more viscous the oil; animal oils tend to be richer in longer chains and poorer in double bonds. Whether
from animal of vegetable origins the oils with the longer unsaturated Ri are solid at room temperature
( margerin, plam stearin, butter, tallow, etc…)

The average composition of CAT1 and CAT3 fats processed at Biopower SA ( a Belgian based oil refinery
and energy producer) has the following composition1:

FFA name reference Mass %

capric 10:0 2%
lauric 12:0 2%
myristic 14:0 3%
palmitic 16:0 24%
palmitoleic 16:1 4%
stearic 18:0 14%
oleic 18:1 44%
linoelic 18:2 3%
arachidic 20:0 2%
behenic 22:0 2%
TABLE 1 : Average FFA composition of incoming CAT1-3 fats.

1 Source / Prof. Roland Verhé, Ghent University.

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The resulting average molecular weight of FFAs in these oils is 217,16 gr/mol.

3.1.2 CHEMISTRY OF OILS AND FATS

Chemically speaking, an oil is an “ester”, namely the result of the condensation of an alcohol with an
acid

The Esterification reaction is written:

RiCOOH + RjOH → RiCOORj + H2O equation 1

Acid + alcohol → ester + water

As said above, in oils (and fats), the alcohol used is in fact a “triol” called glycerol or glycerin:

CH2-OH
!
CH-OH formula 2
!
CH2-OH

The three acids that can react with glycerin always have the generic formula : Ri-COOH.

Stoichiometrically speaking, we expect that 3 FFAs of average 271,16 gr/mol ( or 813,48 gr) will react
with one molecule of glycerol (92 gr/mol) to produce glycerol oil ( 851,48 grl) and water ( 54 gr); or
that ideally 8,84 ton of FFA will react with 1 ton of glycerol to produce 9,26 ton of glycerol oil. In practice
the quantity of glycerol used is a bit higher as some monoglycerides (1 FFA associated with one
Glycerol) and diglycerides (2 FFA associated with one Glycerol) are produced instead of full triglycerides
(3 FFA associated with one Glycerol).

As seen above, in the case of oils, they are called fatty acids because the carbon chain R is quite long
and hydrophobic. The oil is also called a triglyceride to indicate that each of the three oxygen atoms of
glycerin is linked to a fatty acid.

Hydrolysis2 is the process oils undergo when the go « rancid ». In effect, water react with the oil
producing free fatty acids (the opposite reaction of equation 1). Oils purchased in stores have less than
0,5% free fatty acids. When an oil contains more than 1% of these free fatty acids, it is not good for
human consumption anymore.

Oils can also undergo a transesterification reaction, that is a chemical reaction that replaces the origina
alcohol ( glycerin) by another. The most frequent exemple is the productin of biodiesel whereas
glycerin is displaced by methanol

GLY FFA1,2,3 + CH3OH → CH3-FFA1 + CH3-FFA2 + CH3-FFA3 + C3H8O3 equation 2

oil + Methanol → biodiesel + glycerin

Oils are also used to prepare soaps, in this case the oil reacts with , for example Sodium Hydroxide

GLY FFA 1,2,3 + NaOH → FFA1-Na + FFA2-Na + FFA3-Na + 3 H2O equation 3

oil + Sodium Hydroxide → Soap + Water

2 Technically it means “ breaking with water”

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3.1.3 PRODUCTION OF FUELS

Technically speaking commercial and industrial oils can be used as fuel in certain auto-ignition internal
combustion engines.

However, oily materials used for energy purposes are usually not fit for human consumption. Major
impurities are free fatty acids, soaps, water and sediments.

FFA (free fatty acid, i.e. not bound to a glycerin) content is analyzed by acid titration (ISO 660:2009)
and expressed as equivalent oleic content. Soap content is analyzed as per ISO 10539 (internal lab
procedure 320) and expressed as Sodium Stearate content. Water is measured by standard Karl Fisher
titration (ISO 760).

The refining process required to produce suitable fuels for auto-ignition engines consists in separating
the oil from the FFA and other impurities3, thus producing REFINED OIL. Some sophisticated processes
also react the FFAs with Glycerol to produce “glycerol oils” again ( as in equation 1).

The final product is a mixture of these two and is called “biofuel”.

Considering the above, it is thus easily understood that biomass that can be used to produce suitable
biofuel can consist of Vegetable origin or Animal origin, can be considered a WASTE or not and can
even be FFA form specific suppliers.

3.2 COMBUSTION AND INCINERATION

As is epistemology implies, incineration, meaning ‘to reduce to ashes’, generates cinders (

ashes), it is performed in specially designed furnaces that can accommodate wet and low
energy materials without sorting, typically household waste.
Incineration has been used to reduce (by about a factor of 20) the volume of waste. It was
introduced in Europe first in the most densely populated areas as place available for landfilling
was becoming scarce and as issues also arose from poor landfilling procedures (odors, water
table pollution, etc…)

One can write and incinerator reaction as:

Mixed material/waste + Oxygen + isolated vessel -> Water + CO2 + Heat + Ashes

In a waste incinerator, typically, the mass of ashes is ca 5% of the mass of incoming material.

Combustion is the name of the chemical reaction resulting form reacting a combustible
material (fuel) with oxygen thus producing Water and Carbon dioxide. Combustion is also a
chemical (oxidation) process characterized by rapid oxidation and, usually, emission of light.
Thus a gas flame or a candle is a combustion whereas iron rusting is not.

FUEL + Oxygen -> CO2 + H2O

3 Mostly, water, solids and soaps. Soaps are fatty acids linked to Metals such as Calcium, Sodium, Potassium, …

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Typically speaking, FUELS are materials that tend to react fully with oxygen and not producing
ashes.

One notices that there are similitudes and differences between the two (incineration and
combustion). It is probably simpler to remember that in incinerators the main reaction is a
combustion but that all that is introduced in the incinerator is not a fuel, hence a fair amount
of ashes are produced. Combustion on the other hand is a cleaner process where most of the
material used is transformed into water and CO2, hence with very limited amount of ashes.

Example closer to incinerators are household waste incinerators and wood stoves; examples
of combustion processes can be found in natural gas and heating oil boilers, gas, and diesel
engines.

3.3 FUELS FOR AUTO-IGNITION COMBUSTION ENGINES AND INCINERATORS

In the beginning of the last century a German Engineer, Rudolf Diesel discovered that locally
available materials (then linseed oil) could be sprayed by nozzles (now called injectors) in a
closed environment and brought to burn spontaneously by bringing the air oil mixture above
its auto inflammation temperature under rapid compression. The resulting combustion would
heat the resulting air mixture to much higher temperature, thus exerting a force larger than
and in the opposite direction to the initial compression. The exploitation of this led to the
invention of the now famous diesel engine.

Although this technology was developed specifically to not use fossil based fuels (a similar
engine technology having been developed by his countrymen Otto) and was applicable to any
locally available farm oils ( rapeseed, olive, corn, soy, …) the demand rapidly increased and it
was soon discovered that a low value byproduct of fossil oil was a much cheaper fuel source
for diesel engines. This specific distillation cut was later named “Diesel”.

Since its invention, the diesel technology greatly improved and is now the best efficient
transformer of chemical energy into mechanical (and electrical energy). It can be fitted with
particle filters DENOX and after burners to reduce emissions other than Water and CO2 to
negligible amounts.

Combustion engines (auto combustion or not) are machines that can only accept fuels with
strict specifications. Those specifications strongly limit (forbid) the presence of elements that
do not burn (like water) that generate ashes (like metals), that generate corrosive byproducts
(like Sulfur, phosphorus, chloride) that cannot be sprayed properly ( viscosity limit) , that don’t
burn well ( minimum heating value). In way those specifications clearly indicate that what can
be used in an incinerator can not necessarily be used in a combustion engine while the
opposite in not true, i.e. what can be used in a combustion engine can always be used in an
incinerator.

It is thus clear that technically speaking combustion engines are not incinerators. The next
chapter covers the legal understanding of the same concepts.

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3.4 TECHNICAL STEPS USED BY BIOPWER TO PRODUCE COMBUSTION ENGINE FUEL

Raw material arrives as liquid at ca 60°C. It is mainly animal by -product of Categories 1, 2 and or 3, but
can be other biomass.

Biomass is defined by DIRECTIVE 2010/75/EU OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL
of 24 November 2010 on industrial emissions (integrated pollution prevention and control) repealing
20O0/76 EC ; last modified on 6 January 2011) , see definition in section 4.2 p11 below.

Raw material is accepted, and standard laboratory controls are performed (FFA%, Water, Soap and
Sediments).
All incoming materials not meeting fuel standards are mixed into the same receiving tank. The become,
for regulatory purpose only, all Category 1 animal material.

STEP 1 First separation

Category 1 animal material is fed to two tanks unit where Phosphoric acid is added. Separation of
sediments, trace proteins and sediments is performed by sedimentation.
Process parameters: 2 X 6 hours, Phosphoric acid, 60-80°C

STEP 2 Centrifugation (Section 500)

Sediment separated output of STEP 1 is brought to 90 C° and fed to centrifuge operating at 4600 rpm
with automating self- cleaning every 4 min at an oil incoming rate between 7000 and 9000 Kg hour .

Material is centrifuged allowing further elimination of water and some finer particles.
Process parameters: 90 °C, 1 Atm, 4600 rpms

STEP 3 Sterilization (section 505)

The pre-cleaned material from STEP 2 is heated by two heat exchangers, bringing it to 110 °C and then
to 140 °C. After this warming, it enters a sterilization tank, where it is kept at 140 °C so that a thorough
sterilization can occur.
Then the material then goes to a dry tank
Process parameters: 140 °C, 3,5 Barg, duration ca 20 minutes

Sterilization corresponds to requirements of article 3 19° of REGULATION (EC) No 1069/2009 OF THE

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 21 October 2009 laying down health rules as regards
animal by-products and derived products not intended for human consumption and repealing
Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002 (Animal by-products Regulation); last modified on 25 June 2019.

It also satisfies allowed processing methods 1 to 5 of Chapter III of ANNEX IV of COMMISSION

REGULATION (EU) No 142/2011 of 25 February 2011 implementing Regulation (EC) No 1069/2009 of
the European Parliament and of the Council laying down health rules as regards animal by-products
and derived products not intended for human consumption and implementing Council Directive
97/78/EC as regards certain samples and items exempt from veterinary checks at the border under
that Directive; last modified on 25 March 2022.

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SETP 4 Distillation of FFAs (section 800)

Sterilized and precleaned material from STEP 3’s dry tank is sent to distillation unit where Free Fatty
Acids are removed by distillation under vacuum (this also removes any remaining water),
Distilled FFAs are condensed and stored for further processing (see step 6)
Process parameters: 200°C,230°C, with maximum at 265°C, 3 Barg then vacuum

STEP 5 Sediment elimination (section 1101)

FFA free material is put through a separator 100 liter per hour of water is added for incoming oil rate
between 6000 and 8000 Kg per hour.

STEP 6 separation preparation (section 600)

Oil from step 5 is treated with citric acid and Decalite at 105°C.

Process parameters: 105 °C, Atmospheric pressure

STEP 7 Refined oil (section 600)

Output of STEP 6 is finally filtered to less than 1 µm.

Process parameters: 90 -105°C, 2 bar in , Atmospheric pressure out
The product, called refined oil, has now reached fuel standard quality it is stored in tank REF03

STEP 7 Esterification of FFAs

FFAs recovered from distillation are batch fed to a tank and mixed with Glycerol. They are brought to
reacting temperature under vacuum -800 mbar ( =+ 200 mbar)
The esterification reaction is favored by water vapor extraction. Extra glycerol and water are removed
by sedimentation.
Process parameters: 230 °C, 200 mbar, duration ca 10 hours

Esterified FFAS = oil = fuel is sent to tank and will be mixed with the refined oil to become the Biofuel.

Biofuel is stored in TANK REF02 at 90 °C. It is then either sent to Biopower’s day tanks or to
Greenpower’s day tanks or sold to other users with similar combustion engine technology (Electrawinds
Biomass Mouscron) or for biodiesel production.

All these steps use best possible heat recovery and optimization throughout.

4 NAVIGATING THE EU REGULATIONS

4.1 FUNDAMENTAL LEGAL DOCUMENTS RELATED TO ANIMAL PRODUCTS, WASTE

AND ENERGY

The following documents are the most important ones to consider:

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(A) DIRECTIVE 2008/98/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 19

November 2008 on waste and repealing certain Directives; last modified on 14 June 2018

(B) DIRECTIVE 2010/75/EU OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 24

November 2010 on industrial emissions (integrated pollution prevention and control) repealing
20O0/76 EC ; last modified on 6 January 2011

(C) REGULATION (EC) No 1069/2009 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 21
October 2009 laying down health rules as regards animal by-products and derived products
not intended for human consumption and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002 (Animal by-
products Regulation); last modified on 25 June 2019

(D) COMMISSION REGULATION (EU) No 142/2011 of 25 February 2011 implementing Regulation

(EC) No 1069/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down health rules as
regards animal by-products and derived products not intended for human consumption and
implementing Council Directive 97/78/EC as regards certain samples and items exempt from
veterinary checks at the border under that Directive; last modified on 25 March 2022

4.2 FUNDAMENTAL DEFINITIONS IN EU REGULATIONS

ITEM EU DESCRIPTION
text
Waste A any substance or object which the holder discards or intends or is
required to discard;
Municipal Waste A (a) mixed waste and separately collected waste from
households, including paper and cardboard, glass,
metals, plastics, biowaste, wood, textiles, packaging,
waste electrical and electronic equipment, waste
batteries and accumulators, and bulky waste, including
mattresses and furniture;
(b) mixed waste and separately collected waste from other
sources, where such waste is similar in nature and
composition to waste from households;
Municipal waste does not include waste from production,
agriculture, forestry, fishing, septic tanks and sewage network
and treatment, including sewage sludge, end-of-life vehicles or
construction and demolition waste.

This definition is without prejudice to the allocation of

responsibilities for waste management between public and
private actors;
Waste oils A any mineral or synthetic lubrication or industrial oils which have
become unfit for the use for which they were originally intended,
such as used combustion engine oils and gearbox oils, lubricating
oils, oils for turbines and hydraulic oils;
Bio-waste A biodegradable garden and park waste, food and kitchen waste
from households, offices, restaurants, wholesale, canteens,
caterers and retail premises and comparable waste from food
processing plants;
Re-use A any operation by which products or components that are not
waste are used again for the same purpose for which they were
conceived;

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Treatment A recovery or disposal operations, including preparation prior to

recovery or disposal;
Recovery A any operation the principal result of which is waste serving a
useful purpose by replacing other materials which would
otherwise have been used to fulfil a particular function, or waste
being prepared to fulfil that function, in the plant or in the wider
economy. Annex II sets out a non-exhaustive list of recovery
operations; ANNEX II R1 : Use principally as a fuel or other means
to generate energy; This includes incineration facilities dedicated
to the processing of municipal solid waste only where their energy
efficiency is equal to or above:

— 0,60 for installations in operation and permitted in accordance

with applicable Community legislation before 1 January 2009, —
0,65 for installations permitted after 31 December 2008, using
the following formula:

Energy efficiency = (Ep - (Ef + Ei))/(0,97 × (Ew + Ef)) In which:

Ep means annual energy produced as heat or electricity. It is

calculated with energy in the form of electricity being multiplied
by 2,6 and heat produced for commercial use multiplied by 1,1
(GJ/year) Ef means annual energy input to the system from fuels
contributing to the production of steam (GJ/year) Ew means
annual energy contained in the treated waste calculated using the
net calorific value of the waste (GJ/year) Ei means annual energy
imported excluding Ew and Ef (GJ/year) 0,97 is a factor
accounting for energy losses due to bottom ash and radiation.
This formula shall be applied in accordance with the reference
document on Best Available Techniques for waste incineration.
►M2 The energy efficiency formula value will be multiplied by a
climate correction factor (CCF) as shown below:

1. CCF for installations in operation and permitted in accordance

with applicable Union legislation before 1 September 2015.

CCF = 1 if HDD >= 3 350

CCF = 1,25 if HDD <= 2 150

CCF = – (0,25/1 200) × HDD + 1,698 when 2 150 < HDD < 3 350

2. CCF for installations permitted after 31 August 2015 and for

installations under 1 after 31 December 2029:

CCF = 1 if HDD >= 3 350

CCF = 1,12 if HDD <= 2 150

CCF = – (0,12/1 200) × HDD + 1,335 when 2 150 < HDD < 3 350

(The resulting value of CCF will be rounded at three decimal

places).

►C1 The value of HDD (Heating Degree Days) should be taken as

the average of annual HDD values for the incineration facility

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location, calculated for a period of 20 consecutive years before

the year for which CCF is calculated. For the calculation of the
value of HDD the following method established by Eurostat should
be applied: HDD is equal to (18 °C – Tm) × d if Tm is lower than or
equal to 15 °C (heating threshold) and is nil if Tm is greater than
15 °C; where Tm is the mean (Tmin + Tmax)/2 outdoor
temperature over a period of d days. Calculations are to be
executed on a daily basis (d = 1), added up to a year. ◄ ◄
material recovery A any recovery operation, other than energy recovery and the
reprocessing into materials that are to be used as fuels or other
means to generate energy. It includes, inter alia, preparing for re-
use, recycling and backfilling;
Recycling A any recovery operation by which waste materials are reprocessed
into products, materials or substances whether for the original or
other purposes. It includes the reprocessing of organic material
but does not include energy recovery and the reprocessing into
materials that are to be used as fuels or for backfilling operations;
Installation B a stationary technical unit within which one or more activities
listed in Annex I or in Part 1 of Annex VII are carried out, and any
other directly associated activities on the same site which have a
technical connection with the activities listed in those Annexes
and which could have an effect on emissions and pollution;
ANNEX 1.1 Combustion of fuels in installations with a total rated
thermal input of 50 MW or more; 5.2. Disposal or recovery of
waste in waste incineration plants or in waste coincineration
plants:(a) for non-hazardous waste with a capacity exceeding 3
tonnes per hour;
fuel B any solid, liquid or gaseous combustible material;
combustion plant B any technical apparatus in which fuels are oxidised in order to use
the heat thus generated;
Biomass B (a) products consisting of any vegetable matter from agriculture
or forestry which can be used as a fuel for the purpose of
recovering its energy content;

(b) the following waste:

(i) vegetable waste from agriculture and forestry;

(ii) vegetable waste from the food processing industry, if the

heat generated is recovered;

(iii) fibrous vegetable waste from virgin pulp production and

from production of paper from pulp, if it is co-incinerated at
the place of production and the heat generated is recovered;

(iv) cork waste;

(v) wood waste with the exception of wood waste which may
contain halogenated organic compounds or heavy metals as
a result of treatment with wood preservatives or coating and
which includes, in particular, such wood waste originating
from construction and demolition waste;
Diesel engine B an internal combustion engine which operates according to the
diesel cycle and uses compression ignition to burn fuel;
Waste B = Waste as in A

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waste incineration plant
waste co-incineration plant
Co-incineration vs incineration
Animal by product
Derived products
Products of Animal Origin
pressure sterilization
Category 1 material
© MGE / Marc Noël
B any stationary or mobile technical unit and equipment dedicated
to the thermal treatment of waste, with or without recovery of
the combustion heat generated, through the incineration by
oxidation of waste as well as other thermal treatment processes,
such as pyrolysis, gasification or plasma process, if the substances
resulting from the treatment are subsequently incinerated;
B any stationary or mobile technical unit whose main purpose is the
generation of energy or production of material products and
which uses waste as a regular or additional fuel or in which waste
is thermally treated for the purpose of disposal through the
incineration by oxidation of waste as well as other thermal
treatment processes, such as pyrolysis, gasification or plasma
process, if the substances resulting from the treatment are
subsequently incinerated;
B main purpose is the generation of energy or production of
material products which uses waste as a regular or additional fuel
C entire bodies or parts of animals, products of animal origin or
other products obtained from animals, which are not intended for
human consumption, including oocytes, embryos and semen
C products obtained from one or more treatments, transformations
or steps of processing of animal byproducts;
C products of animal origin as defined in point 8.1 of Annex I to
Regulation (EC) No 853/2004 : - food of animal origin, including
honey and blood; — live bivalve molluscs, live echinoderms, live
tunicates and live marine gastropods intended for human
consumption; and — other animals destined to be prepared with
a view to being supplied live to the final consumer.
C the processing of animal by-products, after reduction in particle
size to not more than 50 mm, to a core temperature of more than
133 °C for at least 20 minutes without interruption at an absolute
pressure of at least 3 bar;
C shall comprise the following animal by-products:
(a) entire bodies and all body parts, including hides and skins, of
the following animals:
(i) animals suspected of being infected by a TSE in
accordance with Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 or in which
the presence of a TSE has been officially confirmed;
(ii) animals killed in the context of TSE eradication measures;
(iii) animals other than farmed and wild animals, including
in particular pet animals, zoo animals and circus animals;
(iv) animals used in a procedure or procedures defined in Article 3
of Directive 2010/63/EU of the European Parliament and of the
Council of 22 September 2010 on the protection of animals used
for scientific purposes ( OJ L 276, 20.10.2010, p. 33. ), in cases
where the competent authority decides that such animals or any
of their body parts have the potential to pose serious health risks
to humans or to other animals, as a result of that procedure or
those procedures without prejudice to Article 3(2) of Regulation
(EC) No 1831/2003;
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(v) wild animals, when suspected of being infected with

diseases communicable to humans or animals;

(b) the following material:

(i) specified risk material;

(ii) entire bodies or parts of dead animals containing

specified risk material at the time of disposal;

(c) animal by-products derived from animals which have been

submitted to illegal treatment as defined in Article 1(2)(d) of
Directive 96/22/EC or Article 2(b) of Directive 96/23/EC;

(d) animal by-products containing residues of other substances

and environmental contaminants listed in Group B(3) of Annex I
to Directive 96/23/EC, if such residues exceed the permitted level
laid down by Community legislation or, in the absence thereof, by
national legislation;

(e) animal by-products collected during the treatment of

wastewater required by implementing rules adopted under point
(c) of the first paragraph of Article 27:

(i) from establishments or plants processing Category 1

material; or
(ii) from other establishments or material is being removed;

(f) catering waste from means of transport operating

internationally;

(g) mixtures of Category 1 material with either Category 2

material or Category 3 material or both.
Category 2 material C shall comprise the following animal by-products:

(a) manure, non-mineralized guano and digestive tract content;

(b) animal by-products collected during the treatment of

wastewater required by implementing rules adopted under point
(c) of the first paragraph of Article 27:

(i) from establishments or plants processing Category 2

material; or

(ii) from slaughterhouses other than those covered by Article

8(e);

(c) animal by-products containing residues of authorized

substances or contaminants exceeding the permitted levels as
referred to in Article 15(3) of Directive 96/23/EC;

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(d) products of animal origin which have been declared unfit for
human consumption due to the presence of foreign bodies in
those products;

(e) products of animal origin, other than Category 1 material, that

are:

(i) imported or introduced from a third country and fail to

comply with Community veterinary legislation for their
import or introduction into the Community except where
Community legislation allows their import or introduction
subject to specific restrictions or their return to the third
country; or

(ii) dispatched to another Member State and fail to comply

with requirements laid down or authorized by Community
legislation except where they are returned with the
authorization of the competent authority of the Member
State of origin;

(f) animals and parts of animals, other than those referred to in

Article 8 or Article 10,

(i) that died other than by being slaughtered or killed for

human consumption, including animals killed for disease
control purposes;

(ii) fetuses;

(iii) oocytes, embryos and semen which are not destined for
breeding purposes; and

(iv) dead-in-shell poultry;

(g) mixtures of Category 2 material with Category 3 material;

(h) animal by-products other than Category 1 material or

Category 3 material.
Category 3 material C shall comprise the following animal by-products:

(a) carcasses and parts of animals slaughtered or, in the case of

game, bodies or parts of animals killed, and which are fit for
human consumption in accordance with Community legislation,
but are not intended for human consumption for commercial
reasons;

(b) carcasses and the following parts originating either from

animals that have been slaughtered in a slaughterhouse and were
considered fit for slaughter for human consumption following an
ante-mortem inspection or bodies and the following parts of
animals from game killed for human consumption in accordance
with Community legislation:
(i) carcasses or bodies and parts of animals which are
rejected as unfit for human consumption in accordance with
Community legislation, but which did not show any signs of
disease communicable to humans or animals;

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(ii) heads of poultry;

(iii) hides and skins, including trimmings and splitting

thereof, horns and feet, including the phalanges and the
carpus and metacarpus bones, tarsus and metatarsus
bones, of:

— animals, other than ruminants requiring TSE testing, and

— ruminants which have been tested with a negative result

in accordance with Article 6(1) of Regulation (EC) No
999/2001;

(iv) pig bristles;

(v) feathers;

(c) animal by-products from poultry and lagomorphs slaughtered

on the farm as referred to in Article 1(3)(d) of Regulation (EC) No
853/2004, which did not show any signs of disease communicable
to humans or animals;

(d) blood of animals which did not show any signs of disease
communicable through blood to humans or animals obtained
from the following animals that have been slaughtered in a
slaughterhouse after having been considered fit for slaughter for
human consumption following an ante-mortem inspection in
accordance with Community legislation:

(i) animals other than ruminants requiring TSE testing; and

(ii) ruminants which have been tested with a negative result

in accordance with Article 6(1) of Regulation (EC) No
999/2001;

(e) animal by-products arising from the production of products

intended for human consumption, including degreased bones,
greaves and centrifuge or separator sludge from milk processing;

(f) products of animal origin, or foodstuffs containing products of

animal origin, which are no longer intended for human
consumption for commercial reasons or due to problems of
manufacturing or packaging defects or other defects from which
no risk to public or animal health arise;

(g) petfood and feedingstuffs of animal origin, or feedingstuffs

containing animal by-products or derived products, which are no
longer intended for feeding for commercial reasons or due to
problems of manufacturing or packaging defects or other defects
from which no risk to public or animal health arises;
(h) blood, placenta, wool, feathers, hair, horns, hoof cuts and raw
milk originating from live animals that did not show any signs of
disease communicable through that product to humans or
animals;

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(i) aquatic animals, and parts of such animals, except sea

mammals, which did not show any signs of disease communicable
to humans or animals;

(j) animal by-products from aquatic animals originating from

establishments or plants manufacturing products for human
consumption;

(k) the following material originating from animals which did not
show any signs of disease communicable through that material to
humans or animals:

(i) shells from shellfish with soft tissue or flesh;

(ii) the following originating from terrestrial animals:

— hatchery by-products,

— eggs,

— egg by-products, including egg shells,

(iii) day-old chicks killed for commercial reasons;

(l) aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates other than species

pathogenic to humans or animals;

(m) animals and parts thereof of the zoological orders of Rodentia

and Lagomorpha, except Category 1 material as referred to in
Article 8(a)(iii), (iv) and (v) and Category 2 material as referred to
in Article 9(a) to (g);

(n) hides and skins, hooves, feathers, wool, horns, hair and fur
originating from dead animals that did not show any signs of
disease communicable through that product to humans or
animals, other than those referred to in point (b) of this Article;

(o) adipose tissue from animals which did not show any signs of
disease communicable through that material to humans or
animals, which were slaughtered in a slaughterhouse and which
were considered fit for slaughter for human consumption
following an ante-mortem inspection in accordance with
Community legislation;
(p) catering waste other than as referred to in Article 8(f).
Rendered fats D either fats derived from the processing of:

(a) animal by-products; or

(b) products for human consumption, which an operator has

destined for purposes other than human consumption;
fat derivatives D derived products from rendered fats, which, as regards rendered
fats of Category 1 or Category 2 material, have been processed in
accordance with Chapter XI of Annex XIII; 1. The following
processes may be used to produce fat derivatives from rendered
fats derived from Category 1 and Category 2 material:

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(a) transesterification or hydrolysis at a temperature of at least

200 °C, under corresponding appropriate pressure, for at least 20
minutes (glycerol, fatty acids and esters);

(b) saponification with NaOH 12M (glycerol and soap):

(i) in a batch process at 95 °C for three hours; or

(ii) in a continuous process at 140 °C 2 bars (2 000 hPa) for

eight minutes; or

(c) hydrogenation at 160 °C at 12 bars (12 000 hPa) for 20

minutes.
co-incineration D the recovery or disposal of animal by-products or derived
products, if they are waste, in a co-incineration plant;
combustion D a process involving the oxidization of fuel in order to use the
energy value of the animal by-products or derived products, if they
are not waste;
incineration D the disposal of animal by-products or derived products as waste,
in an incineration plant, as defined in point 4 of Article 3 of
Directive 2000/76/EC = same in B
incineration and co-incineration D any residues as defined in point 13 of Article 3 of Directive
residues’ 2000/76/EC, which are generated by incineration or co-
incineration plants treating animal by-products or derived
products; ‘residue’ means any liquid or solid material (including
bottom ash and slag, fly ash and boiler dust, solid reaction
products from gas treatment, sewage sludge from the
treatment of waste waters, spent catalysts and spent
activated carbon) defined as waste in Article 1(a) of Directive
75/442/EEC, which is generated by the incineration or co-
incineration process, the exhaust gas or waste water
treatment or other processes within the incineration or co-
incineration plant.

5 WASTE OR PRODUCT
As it will be shown, applying the Waste directive (EC 2008/98) to animal materials and animal by-
product can only be done using the Industrial emissions directive (EC 2010/75). A mutual exclusion
principle exists between the waste directive and the animal product directive (EC1069/2009) and its
related regulation (EU No 142/2011). Hence there is no difficulty in understanding the correct legal
framework to be applied.

5.1 FROM THE WASTE PERSPECTIVE

From DIRECTIVE 2008/98/EC’s definitions, one might consider animal fat as a waste and bio-waste, but
not as municipal waste, nor as waste oils.

The transformation and used performed by Biopower can neither be considered as ‘re-use’ nor
‘recycling’ but can be considered as ‘treatment’ and, in particular, as ‘recovery’ or ‘material recovery’.

However, article 2 of the waste directive specifically excludes some materials issued from animals :

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Article 2

Exclusions from the scope

2. The following shall be excluded from the scope of this Directive to the extent that
they are covered by other Community legislation:

(b) animal by-products including processed products covered by Regulation

(EC) No 1774/2002, except those which are destined for incineration,
landfilling or use in a biogas or composting plant;

(c) carcasses of animals that have died other than by being slaughtered,
including animals killed to eradicate epizootic diseases, and that are disposed
of in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002;

(e) substances that are destined for use as feed materials as defined in point
(g) of Article 3(2) of Regulation (EC) No 767/2009 of the European Parliament
and of the Council ( 2 ) and that do not consist of or contain animal by-
products.

NB EC 1774/2002 was repealed and replaced by EC 1069/2009 that is reviewed below.

Hence treatment of Category I, 2 or 3 animal by-products is excluded by the waste directive

and these are not to be considered as waste unless they are destined for incineration, landfilling
or use in a biogas or composting plant.

Although , as will be shown below, Category 1 to 3 animal by-products cannot be considered as waste
, even if they were prior to be admitted at the Biopower plant, one should also consider article 6 which
provides ground rules for end- of-waste status.

‘1. Member States shall take appropriate measures to ensure that waste which has
undergone a recycling or other recovery operation is considered to have ceased to be
waste if it complies with the following conditions:

(a) the substance or object is to be used for specific purposes;

(b) a market or demand exists for such a substance or object;

(c) the substance or object fulfils the technical requirements for the
specific purposes and meets the existing legislation and standards
applicable to products; and

(d) the use of the substance or object will not lead to overall adverse
environmental or human health impacts.’

As described in section 3.4 above, all provisions (a) to (d) above are met at the
Biopower plant. So notwithstanding the status (waste or not) of the incoming material,
as it is accepted at the plant, it should be considered as animal by-product. The biofuel

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resulting from treatment of this animal byproduct should be considered as a PRODUCT

meeting all the end-of waste requirements of article 3 of 2008/98 EC.

5.2 FROM THE INDUSTIRIAL EMISSIONS’ PERSPECTIVE

Incineration is defined in DIRECTIVE 2010/75. From the definitions found in this directive, one can
consider the Biopower unit is NOT and Installation as it has a heat input inferior to 50 MW thermal.
The it follows one has to verify the status of the transformation of material into energy.
Directive 2010/75 difines incineration plant, co-incineration plants, diesel engine, combustion plant
and biomass.

Clearly feedstock classified as Category 1 to 3 animal by-product can not be considered as biomass unt-
der this directive.
The transformation of material into energy can however be potentially be considered a ‘combustion
plant’ or an ‘incineration plant’ or ‘’co incineration plant’.
As per Article 2 the directive applies to the industrial activities giving rise to pollution referred to in
Chapters II to VI.
Chapter II points to Annex I to defined activities
Chapter III covers Combustion plants
Chapter IV covers Waste incineration and co-incineration plants
Chapter V covers installations and activities using solvents
Chapter VI covers Titanium Oxide production units.

ANNEX I covers (potentially relevant extract)

1.1. Combustion of fuels in installations with a total rated thermal input of 50 MW or more
4.1. Production of organic chemicals, such as: oxygen-containing hydrocarbons such as
alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, carboxylic acids, esters and mixtures of esters, acetates, ethers,
peroxides and epoxy resins;

Point 1.1 is not relevant here as thermal input is lower than 50MW, so if one wishes to apply
directive 2010/75 to biopower, it has to be considered as an ester or mixture of esters
producer.
But this interpretation goes against common sense as Biopower does not sell esters or
mixtures of esters in the chemical market.

Chapter III is similar to chapter II annex I 1.1 as it is valid only for :

‘This Chapter shall apply to combustion plants, the total rated thermal input of
which is equal to or greater than 50 MW, irrespective of the type of fuel used.’

Chapter IV applies to :

‘1. This Chapter shall apply to waste incineration plants and waste
coincineration plants which incinerate or co-incinerate solid or liquid waste.’
But excludes :
‘2. This Chapter shall not apply to the following plants:

(a) plants treating only the following wastes:

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(i) waste listed in point (b) of point 31 of Article 3; ( NB vegetable waste)

(ii) radioactive waste;

(iii) animal carcasses as regulated by Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002 of the

European Parliament and of the Council of 3 October 2002 laying down health
rules concerning animal by-products not intended for human consumption ( 1 );’

As article 1 implies, Chapter III only covers waste incineration and the handling of liquid and
solid incineration waste residue, which does not exists in a diesel plant. Further , article 30
specifies :
‘8. The emission limit values set out in Parts 1 and 2 of Annex V shall not
apply to the following combustion plants:

(a) diesel engines;’

It results this directive considers an energy producing plant as EITHER an incineration

or a co-incineration plant OR a combustion plant?; these two are mutually exclusive..
Incineration implies WASTE recovery ( in the sense of DIRECTIVE 2008/98/EC) whereas
combustion implies use of FUELS.
Diesel engines are part of Combustion plants, they use fuels.
Biopower’s plant is not covered by DIRECTIVE 2008/98/EC because it does not meet the
minimum power threshold of 50 MW.
As incineration is not the final use, conclusion of section 5.1.1 is treatment of Category I,2 or
3 animal by products is excluded by the waste directive.

5.3 FROM THE ANIMAL BY-PRODUCTS’ PERSPECTIVE (1069/2009 EC AND

REGULATION 142/2001)

Under 1069/2009 EC, Category 1, 2 and 3 are animal by-products.

They undergo a pressure sterilization on site.
Sterilization corresponds to requirements of article 3 19° of REGULATION (EC) No 1069/2009 OF THE
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 21 October 2009 laying down health rules as regards
animal by-products and derived products not intended for human consumption and repealing
Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002 (Animal by-products Regulation); last modified on 25 June 2019.
It also satisfies allowed processing methods 1 to 5 of Chapter III of ANNEX IV of COMMISSION
REGULATION (EU) No 142/2011 of 25 February 2011 implementing Regulation (EC) No 1069/2009 of
the European Parliament and of the Council laying down health rules as regards animal by-products
and derived products not intended for human consumption and implementing Council Directive
97/78/EC as regards certain samples and items exempt from veterinary checks at the border under that
Directive; last modified on 25 March 2022.

EC 1069/2009 considers
a process involving the oxidisation of fuel in order to use the energy value of the animal by-
products or derived products, if they are not waste as a Combustion process

Even if the end-of-waste status was not obtained by the bio-fuel, Chapter V of ANNEX III of
regulation 142/2011 specifies the conditions for use of animal by-products as fuels.

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Regulation 2010/75 CHAPTER V

TYPES OF PLANTS AND FUELS THAT MAY BE USED FOR COMBUSTION AND
SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS FOR PARTICULAR TYPES OF PLANTS

A. Stationary internal combustion engines

1. Starting material:

For this process, a fat fraction derived from animal by-products of all categories
may be used provided it meets the following conditions:

(a) unless fish oil or rendered fat is used which has been produced in
accordance with Section VIII or XII of Annex III to Regulation (EC) No
853/2004, respectively, the fat fraction derived from animal by-products
must first be processed using:

(i) in the case of a fat fraction of Category 1 and 2 materials, any

of the processing methods 1 to 5 as set out in Chapter III of Annex
IV.

Where this fat is moved by a closed conveyer system, which may

not be by-passed, and provided such a system has been
authorized by the competent authority, from the processing
plant for immediate direct combustion the permanent marking
with glyceroltriheptanoate (GTH) referred to in point 1 of
Chapter V of Annex VIII shall not be required;

(ii) in the case of a fat fraction of Category 3 material, any of the

processing methods 1 to 5 or processing method 7 as set out in
Chapter III of Annex IV;

(iii) in the case of the materials derived from fish, any of the
processing methods 1 to 7 as set out in Chapter III of Annex IV;

(b) the fat fraction must be separated from the protein and in the case
of fat from ruminant origin which is intended to be combusted in another
plant, insoluble impurities in excess of 0,15 % by weight must be
removed.

2. Methodology:

Combustion of animal fat as a fuel in a stationary internal combustion engine

shall be carried out as follows:

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(a) the fat fractions referred to in points 1(a) and (b) must be combusted:

(i) under the conditions laid down in Section 2(1) of Chapter IV;
or

(ii) using process parameters achieving an equivalent outcome

as the conditions under (i) and which are authorized by the
competent authority;

(b) the combustion of material of animal origin other than animal fat
must not be permitted;

(c) the animal fat derived from Category 1 or Category 2 combusted in

premises approved or registered in accordance with Regulations (EC) No
852/2004, (EC) No 853/2004, 183/2005, or in public places must have
been processed with processing method 1 as set out in Chapter III of
Annex IV;

(d) the combustion of animal fat must be carried out in accordance with
Union legislation for the protection of the environment, in particular,
with reference to the standards and requirements of that legislation and
the requirements regarding best available techniques for the control and
monitoring of emissions.

3. Operating conditions:

By way of derogation from the requirements set out in the first paragraph of
point 2 of Section 2 of Chapter IV, requirements based on other process
parameters, which ensure an equivalent environmental outcome may be
authorized by the competent authority responsible for environmental issues.

The process of using animal fat materials to produce energy includes all operations
(extraction of the fat, transport, and transformation) until the final product meets the
fuel specifications for combustion engine.
The process of using animal fat materials to produce energy is legally defined by the
ABP directive. This means that the animal fat material is not a waste, but a product,
more precisely an Animal by-product.
This also means that the combustion engine is not to be considered as an incinerator
and its fuel is not to be considered as a waste.
It also results from this that the regional competent authority should use its standard
(stationary engines) legislation for emissions control purposes.

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6 CONCLUSION
EU legislation is self-consistent in its treatment of animal-based materials and their use.

The case of BIOPOWER clearly falls under EC 1069/2009 directive as it transforms category 1
animal material into a product called biofuel and then valorizes this fuel in diesel combustion
engines to produce electrical energy.

This conclusion is compatible with the guidelines on the interpretation of key provisions of
directive 2008/98/EC on waste, in particular the conclusions of section 2.5 covering use of
animal by-products which addresses a counter example.

ANNEX

(A) DIRECTIVE 2008/98/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 19

November 2008 on waste and repealing certain Directives; last modified on 14 June 2018

(B) DIRECTIVE 2010/75/EU OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 24

November 2010 on industrial emissions (integrated pollution prevention and control) repealing
20O0/76 EC ; last modified on 6 January 2011

(C) REGULATION (EC) No 1069/2009 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 21
October 2009 laying down health rules as regards animal by-products and derived products
not intended for human consumption and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1774/2002 (Animal by-
products Regulation); last modified on 25 June 2019

(D) COMMISSION REGULATION (EU) No 142/2011 of 25 February 2011 implementing Regulation

(EC) No 1069/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down health rules as
regards animal by-products and derived products not intended for human consumption and
implementing Council Directive 97/78/EC as regards certain samples and items exempt from
veterinary checks at the border under that Directive; last modified on 25 March 2022

(E) Guidelines on the interpretation of key provisions of Directive 2008/98/EC on waste, June
2012.

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