New project added! Vietstar Municipal Solid Waste Treatment Plant

In many Vietnamese communities, organic waste is sent to landfill because there are no adequate composting facilities nearby. When organic matter decomposes in landfill, it produces landfill gas (LFG), which is approximately 50% carbon dioxide and 50% methane. Both of these gases trap heat in the atmosphere, worsening the greenhouse effect.

Methane is a strong greenhouse gas, and a major contributor to climate change. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), methane traps 28 to 36 times more heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide does over a 100-year period. Proper organic waste disposal reduces the amount of methane released into the atmosphere.

Less Emissions' newest project is the Vietstar Municipal Solid Waste Treatment Plant, a composting facility in Vietnam that captures methane gas emissions from municipal waste. Prior to this initiative, organic materials decayed openly in landfill and emitted methane.

The project involves pre-sorting and classifying municipal solid waste, recycling plastic, and treating organic matter with LEMNA composting technology to produce bio-fertilizer for local farmers. In addition to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, these Vietstar initiatives reduce landfill waste and contribute to the soil productivity and economic sustainable development of the region.

The project treats approximately 400,000 tonnes of solid waste per year, which is more than 1,000 tonnes of waste per day. It has also boosted the local economy by creating 810 jobs at the facility and in bio-fertilizer distribution.

The Vietstar Municipal Solid Waste Treatment Plant is expected to produce 53,568 tonnes of organic compost annually, and it prevents 182,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions from entering the atmosphere on average each year.

This project is certified by Gold Standard, a global standard for projects in developing countries that verifiably achieve greenhouse gas emissions reductions at the source and create positive impacts on social networks and their local economy.

Serialized offsets from this project are retired on behalf of Less customers and are listed on the UNFCCC registry to preclude double-counting of the environmental benefits. Less provides an annual independent audit by Deloitte to demonstrate that all international offsets are derived from Gold Standard-certified projects. You can read our most recent audit here.

Want to support this project? When you choose Gold Standard offsets, you'll be supporting the Vietstar plant as well as our other Gold Standard projects.