Management of olive solid waste in Lebanon: From mill to stove

Finding new clean sources to match the fast overgrow of energy consumption and its expected environmental pollution has become an inevitable need [1]. The solution will mainly be to increasingly befriend renewable energy sources. Narrowing the circle towards a more local setting, this study focuses on biomass olive solid waste as source of renewable energy in Lebanon.The paper presents an overview at oleiculture in Lebanon: geographical distribution, olives׳ production, mills distribution and types, olive solid wastes produced, and their energy potential. Effectively, the energy potential of the yearly produced 79,000 t of olive solid wastes is around 380 GJ per year. In addition to the benefits coming from using this waste as an energy source, economic, environmental and social benefits are evaluated. The ultimate purpose hence becomes seeing the sustainability of this product. A primary planning is also taken on the treatment of this waste.