Formaldehyde bonus
The so-called formaldehyde bonus is a bonus payment with which the construction and operation of biogas plants with particularly low formaldehyde emissions is promoted in Germany . The bonus was introduced with the amendment to the Renewable Energy Sources Act in 2009.
The reason for the introduction of this remuneration relates to compliance with the amendment to the Technical Instructions on Air Quality Control (TA Luft). This specifies limit values for hydrocarbons which biogas plants do not comply with without an additional purification stage. Old-style biogas plants emit formaldehyde in quantities that are above the permissible limit value according to TA-Luft.
The emission of hydrocarbons is limited by law, as these are environmentally hazardous and contribute to the greenhouse effect. In addition, formaldehyde is suspected to be carcinogenic and classified as harmful to human health. The emissions of hydrocarbons can be reduced with various technical measures. In order to subsidize the retrofitting and as an incentive for the system operator, a fee of 1 cent per kilowatt hour is paid in the event of a proven minimization of the pollution.