St. Landry Parish Landfill Project Recognized for Transforming Waste into a Green Community Asset

EPA Press Release:

St. Landry Parish Landfill Project Recognized for Transforming Waste into a Green Community Asset

DALLAS -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recognized St. Landry Parish Landfill for generating renewable energy from a local source while protecting the climate, providing energy savings and strengthening the economy.

Located in Washington, La., the St. Landry Parish Landfill is now home to a compressed natural gas project developed by the St. Landry Parish Solid Waste District. This project helps fuel several sheriff’s department vehicles and turns 50 cubic feet per minute of landfill gas into 250 gallons of gasoline equivalent, resulting in significant benefits in local air quality. The Parish uses the project to educate local residents and students about the environment.

In total, eight landfill methane utilization projects and partners from across the U.S. will be recognized at the 16th Annual Landfill Methane Outreach Program Conference in Baltimore, Md. on January 30, 2013. This year's eight winning projects and partners will avoid the emissions equal to the annual greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from more than 52,000 passenger vehicles. The seven electricity-generating projects total approximately 50 megawatts of generation capacity, and the direct-use project uses 50 standard cubic feet per minute of landfill gas.

The remaining seven awardees include: Gundersen Health System and La Crosse County Landfill Combined Heat and Power Project (Wis.), Landfill Energy Systems (Mich.), Lycoming County Landfill Dual Cogeneration and Electricity Project (Pa.), Millersville Landfill Electricity Project (Md.), Olinda Alpha Landfill Combined Cycle Project (Calif.), Watauga County Landfill Small Electricity Project (N.C.), and Coca-Cola and Hickory Ridge Landfill Combined Heat and Power Project (Ga.).

EPA’s Landfill Methane Outreach Program is a voluntary assistance and partnership program that reduces GHG emissions by supporting landfill gas energy project development. The program has assisted with more than 560 landfill gas energy projects over the past 18 years, transforming waste into a green community asset. The U.S. currently has about 600 operational landfill gas energy projects.

More information: http://www.epa.gov/lmop

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