A new regulation in Washington will open the door for dozens of landfills to improve their gas collection operations, potentially boosting the production of renewable natural gas in the state.
Washington finalized its new landfill methane rule in May, requiring all landfills in the state that accepted MSW after 1992 to install a gas collection and control system and institute quarterly monitoring for gas leaks. The announcement from the state’s Department of Ecology also noted a $15 million funding opportunity to install such systems. The department estimates 26 landfills are eligible for the funding.
In a release announcing the move, the department estimated the rule would prevent 1.6 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions over a 20-year period. It also specifically cited the opportunity to incorporate beneficial uses into gas capture systems, including upgrading the biogas to renewable natural gas.
A draft version of the rule first circulated in January. It was initiated by legislation passed in Washington in 2022 at the same time that the state set a goal to reduce the amount of organic material going into landfills by 75% by 2030. It joins other laws passed in California and Oregon that have led to growing investment in landfill gas systems.
Read on for more of the latest news about RNG projects announced this month.
Lawmakers introduce RNG Incentive Act in Senate
Members of the U.S. Senate introduced a bill that would provide a $1 per gallon tax credit for RNG used as a transportation fuel. The credit would expire in 2034. The Renewable Natural Gas Incentive Act was introduced by Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., and Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and is a companion to a bill introduced in the House by Rep. Linda T. Sánchez, D-Calif., and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., last year.
In a release announcing the bill on May 22, Warner's office said RNG receives a lower tax credit than similar transportation fuels despite its potential for emissions reduction and economic growth. He said the credit would accelerate investment.
"This tax credit will help incentivize the use of clean, reliable, and affordable fuel sources and continue to aid the transition to a clean economy while creating good-paying jobs and reducing our reliance on foreign energy,” Warner said.
The credit does not apply to fuels produced or sold outside the U.S.
"This bill incentivizes the use of clean energy while promoting economic growth through lowering the cost of doing business and decreasing reliance on foreign energy," Tillis said. "I am proud to introduce this commonsense legislation which will safeguard America’s energy independence.”
Divert announces Ohio plant amid rapid expansion
Divert has announced its next Integrated Diversion & Energy facility will be located in Harrison, Ohio, a town near Cincinnati on the border with Indiana. It’s the company’s first facility in Ohio and 14th nationwide.
Divert CEO Ryan Begin highlighted Hamilton County's agriculture and food manufacturing industry in a release announcing the facility. The $100 million plant received local support, including via a 1.455%, seven-year Job Creation Tax Credit from the Ohio Tax Credit Authority, the Cincinnati Business Courier reported. It’s expected to serve customers in Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky.
Divert did not provide a groundbreaking date for the new facility. It’s part of a broader push by the company to build 30 facilities throughout the U.S., thanks to a $1 billion investment from Canadian energy company Enbridge. In April, the company announced its third anaerobic digestion facility in North Carolina, and it’s reportedly pursuing another facility in Conewago Township, Pennsylvania.
EnviTec partners with SJI for US growth
EnviTec Biogas, a German bioenergy company with operations in 16 countries, announced on May 29 it had opened two dairy digesters in the U.S. The facilities are located in Cassville, New York, and Ellington, Connecticut, and will produce 135 standard cubic feet per minute and 150 standard cubic feet per minute of natural gas, respectively.
The projects are among a portfolio of more than a dozen facilities EnviTec is developing for South Jersey Industries.
At full buildout, the portfolio will produce more than 5,300 scfm of RNG, according to a release. That buildout is expected to occur throughout 2024. EnviTec says it has commissioned eight biogas projects in the U.S. and connected four to the natural gas grid. The two new facilities announced this month transport gas to feed-in points via trailer.
EnviTec's U.S. subsidiary planned, designed and constructed the facilities over the course of 18 months. SJI owns the plants. The energy infrastructure company has been active in the digestion space, commissioning one of the country's largest food-waste-to-RNG facilities with partners Captona and RNG Energy Solutions earlier this year. In SJI's 2022 ESG report, its most recent, the company touted development of more than 20 RNG projects.
