Your garbage can generate electricity (and more)

May 19, 2008

Some of you may have already heard about landfills across the country utilizing their garbage to generate electricity. It sounds like a great idea. They dump the garbage into the landfill and collect the gases that are created while it’s decomposing. Typically, methane is the gas they look for to generate the power, which varies from 45-60% of the gas released during decomposition. However upon investigating that last link, it seems small amounts of harmful gases are also released during decomposition. This becomes a problem especially if these gases are burned; up to 0.6% of gases released can be carcinogenic and deadly to humans.

So what’s the solution? Enter Plasco Energy Group. Their aim is to use almost all (over 99% compared to 76-91% of typical landfill methane use) of the garbage we produce, and not just to take the methane for electricity. With their methods they have achieved over four times the amount of a typical landfiill gas capture plant, while drastically reducing harmful toxins in the air. Each ton of garbage they take in can produce 1.4MHw of electricity, 300 liters of potable water, 10-20 pounds of commercial salt, 300 lbs of contruction materials, and 10 lbs of fertilizer. Wow! All that from garbage.

If anything ever sounded like cash cow to me, this would be it. Seriously, how cool would it be to make money and solve the world’s problems… from garbage?? New York City spends $65-$90 to dispose of 1 ton of garbage, but with this method, we could be MAKING at least $15 a ton without exposing harmful elements to their air and people.

Plasco has a page to suggest new places for their plants, where they will build, own, and operate the plants. Looks like it’s time for me to write to my governor and mayor… again.

Posted in agriculture, alternative energy, garbage, green biz ideas, wasted resources