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In September 2008, Waste Management and the City & County of Denver cut the ribbon on an exciting new facility that captures waste gas from the Denver Arapahoe Disposal Site (DADS) and the Lowry Landfill and recycles it into an important source of renewable energy for the surrounding community. Landfill gas – which consists of approximately 50% methane, 45% carbon dioxide and a balance of nitrogen and other gases – is created by the biological decomposition of organic matter in landfills under low oxygen conditions. Under the originally approved Lowry Landfill remedy, landfill gas from the site was collected at extraction wells and delivered through pipelines to a large burner that simply destroyed the gas. Landfill gas from DADS was burned off at the same facility as well. Rather than destroy that waste gas, the Landfill Gas-to-Energy Plant converts gas from both sites into 3.2 megawatts of electrical power for distribution by Xcel Energy, reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the process and helping the utility meet statutory requirements for using renewable energy sources. The City & County of Denver receives royalty payments from the sale of the energy, an added benefit for taxpayers. According to Waste Management – which funded, built and operates the plant – similar systems are in place at landfills around the country, though this is the only operational plant utilizing this innovative technology in Colorado to date. To summarize, the package of benefits this facility provides to the community and the environment include:
Below is a brochure on the gas-to-energy process from Waste Management, as well as photographs from the Landfill Gas-to-Energy Plant's July 2007 groundbreaking and September 2008 ribbon cutting ceremonies.
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