Trash, waste are
newest fuel sources
Sep 25, 2005 - The State, Columbia, S.C.
Author(s): James D. Mcwilliams
Sep. 25--Santee Cooper is turning trash into treasure by collecting
methane gas produced in landfills and burning the gas to generate
electricity.
Part of that power will come from an $8 million power plant the
utility is building on 123 acres at the Richland County landfill in
Elgin, said spokeswoman Laura Varn. That plant, which will be able to
produce 5.5 megawatts of electricity at one time, is scheduled to start
operation Feb. 28.
The Elgin plant is one of multiple landfill projects around the
state, representing a $26.1 million investment by Santee Cooper, company
officials said. Another 5.5-megawatt plant is being constructed in
Anderson. The $7 million plant will start operating in May, Varn said.
In April, the company opened an $8.5 million,5.4-megawatt station in
Lee County.
The utility will be able to generate nearly 20 megawatts daily from
the gas produced as trash decays, utility officials said.
Santee Cooper became the first utility in South Carolina to generate
power from landfill gas in September 2001 at the Horry County landfill
near Conway.
Decomposition happens almost immediately after garbage is buried, so
methane collection can begin as soon as a landfill section hits capacity
and is covered. Still, landfill methane provides just a small percentage
of Santee Cooper's overall output and the utility does not make much
money on it.
However, there are strong environmental incentives for tapping
landfill methane. The gas would otherwise escape into the atmosphere
where it is 20 times more dangerous than the greenhouse gas carbon
dioxide, according to the U.S. Department of Environmental Protection.
Methane contributes to global warming, but, if converted to
electricity, it can help curb some of the most severe damage to the
atmosphere, the EPA said.
Santee Cooper also has considered harvesting methane fuel from animal
excrement collected from farms, Varn said.
North Carolina State University has worked for five years on a
project with Smithfield Foods and Premium Standard Farms to generate
energy from methane-rich pig droppings.
Animal-waste has been used as a power source at many farms nationally
for 30 years, said Leonard Bull, associate director of the Animal and
Poultry Waste Management Center at N.C. State.
But Santee Cooper currently has not found a large enough supplier to
make the technology economically viable in South Carolina, Varn said.
"The amount of waste needed would be extensive," she said.
Knight Ridder Newspapers contributed to this report.
© Copyright 2005 NetContent, Inc. Duplication and
distribution restricted.
Visit http://www.powermarketers.com/index.shtml
for excellent coverage on your energy news front.
|