The Anchorage, Alaska, Assembly recently approved $100,000 from its solid waste services budget to study how a waste-to-energy (WTE) plant would work with the city’s landfill limits.
The nearby landfill in Eagle River has an estimated 42 operational years left, while a WTE plant would increase that lifespan to 177 years, stated the city’s solid waste services manager. Reports note that other options include sending trash to the Matanuska-Susitna Valley or removing it by water using a barge—neither of which are economically viable.
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The Anchorage Assembly approved funds to study how the city would build a waste-to-energy incineration plant to contend with its landfill limits, officials said.
The assembly approved $100,000 from its Solid Waste Services budget Tuesday to fund a plan to be completed in 90 days, The Anchorage Daily News reported Thursday.
The $300 million to $400 million plant would require seven to 10 years of work before opening, officials said.