Alaska’s First Landfill Gas-to-Energy Facility Opens

Allan Gerlat, News Editor

August 1, 2012

1 Min Read
Waste360 logo in a gray background | Waste360

The first landfill gas-to-energy facility in Alaska has opened.

Fairbanks, Alaska-based Doyon Utilities LLC said it owns and operates the facility in Anchorage at the Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, a joint U.S. Army and Air Force base. The project will provide half of the base’s 13 megawatts of peak demand power.

The facility is powered by the Fairfield, Conn.-based General Electric Co.’s (GE) Jenbacher gas engines, said in a news release.

Doyon will buy the gas produced by the facility for at least the next 20 years with an option for another 40 years, under the agreement with the municipality. The power produced will offset what the military would have to buy from the municipality, which will amount to more than $30 million in savings during the project’s life, military officials said.

The Anchorage Regional Landfill, which opened in 1987, has the capacity to hold 40 million cubic yards of waste. Currently one-third full, officials expect the landfill to reach capacity around 2045. As the landfill expands the opportunity to increase the plant’s capacity will increase as well.

“Beginning in 2013, federal agencies will be required to use renewable energy sources to provide at least 7.5 percent of total electric consumption,” said Dan Gavora, Doyon CEO. “GE’s technology allows us to turn landfill gas into an energy source for the U.S. military base and also into a revenue stream for the municipal utility, which currently flares the gas instead of selling it.”

 

About the Author

Allan Gerlat

News Editor, Waste360

Allan Gerlat joined the Waste360 staff in September 2011 as news editor. He was the editor of Waste & Recycling News for the first 16 years of its history, and under his guidance the publication won 27 national and regional awards.

Before Waste & Recycling News, Allan worked at another Crain Communications publication, Rubber & Plastics News, which covers rubber product manufacturing. He began with the publication as associate editor and eventually became managing editor, a position he held for nine years.

Allan is a graduate of Ohio University, where he earned a BS in journalism. He is based in Sagamore Hills, in northeast Ohio.

Stay in the Know - Subscribe to Our Newsletters
Join a network of more than 90,000 waste and recycling industry professionals. Get the latest news and insights straight to your inbox. Free.

You May Also Like