Dive Brief:
- Rumpke Waste & Recycling officially unveiled a new gas-to-energy plant at the Brown County Landfill in Ohio on July 13, according to a press release.
- Energy from the 4.8 MW facility is being sold directly to American Municipal Power of Ohio through a long-term agreement. Rumpke estimates it will generate enough to power 3,000 homes for residents in area communities around Ohio and Kentucky.
- Before this plant was constructed, the gas collected from 80 wells onsite was being directed to a central flare system and destroyed. The estimated $8 million facility will be owned and operated by Energy Developments.
Dive Insight:
Rumpke broke ground on this project in November 2016 and this is its third landfill gas recovery system. According to Rumpke, a similar operation at their landfill in Colerain Township, OH is "the world’s largest landfill gas to direct energy pipeline." The company also has a gas-to-energy at a landfill in Pendleton County, KY.
Last month, Rumpke announced new support from the Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority for a planned $20 million office project that is projected to open in 2019. As the largest employer in the Colerain Township area, Rumpke's decision to keep its headquarters there was a priority for the community. Other recently completed or announced projects include a new maintenance facility, a renovation at their mixed glass recycling facility in Dayton and a new recycling facility in Indiana.
Gas-to-energy projects remain a popular option for companies looking to maximize profits from their landfills while maintaining compliance with emissions requirements. Due to those factors, and supportive regulations at the federal and sometimes state level, these types of biogas projects are some of the fastest growing sources of renewable energy in the industry. According to the most recent Environmental Protection Agency data, the U.S. currently has 654 active landfill gas-to-energy projects and an additional 405 candidate sites.
