A holistic view of biomethane: Insights from a systematic review of biomethane in Ireland

Biomethane is gaining traction as a possible renewable alternative to fossil gas. Due to its interconnection with food and waste systems and the decentralised nature of its production it is a complex energy source that should be considered within the broader energy-environment-society nexus it occupies. To map this complexity, we conduct a systematic review of research on biomethane in Ireland from which we develop insights on biomethane that go beyond the Irish context. Our research complements existing cross-country studies which, due to their geographic scope, have focused more on specific elements of the biomethane life cycle than the interplay between them. We find that the national context substantially shapes the potential for and impacts of a biomethane industry. However, even within a single-country context, there is strong uncertainty around the scale of biomethane’s energy and carbon abatement potential. Our research also highlights the importance of a socio-ecological systems level analysis of biomethane as it has wide-reaching positive and negative social and environmental impacts that, at least in the Irish case, have so far been understudied. Finally, we highlight the need for a long-term vision of the space biomethane will occupy in an energy system since it is frequently portrayed as an interim solution until other technology matures.