News

EVENTS

Alternative Technology Advisory Subcommittee Meeting (ATAS)

March 21, 2019

Alhambra, CA

For more information on this event, please visit the website:

http://dpw.lacounty.gov/epd/tf/meetings.cfm

International Biomass Conference & Expo

March 18-20, 2019

Savannah, GA

http://www.biomassconference.com/ema/DisplayPage.aspx?pageId=Home

California Municipal Utilities Association 2019 Annual Conference

March 31-April 2, 2019

San Diego, CA

https://www.cmua.org/ev_calendar_day.asp?date=3/31/2019&eventid=7

BioCycle West Coast19

April 1-4, 2019

Portland, OR

http://www.biocyclewestcoast.com/

Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) 48^th Annual Western Regional Symposium

April 8-11, 2019

Fish Camp, CA

https://socalswana.org/events/western-regional-symposium-sierra-swana-chapter/

WasteExpo

May 6-9, 2019

Las Vegas, NV

https://www.wasteexpo.com/en/home.html

The 11^th Waste Conversion Technology Conference (WCTC)

June 2-4, 2019

Atlantic City, NJ

https://wasteconversionconference.com/

NEWS

Los Angeles to Combine Food Waste, Biosolids for Massive Energy Project

Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts (LACSD) is using existing infrastructure at its materials recovery facility (MRF) and wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) to expand its food waste co-digestion operation. Currently, the project can process 165 tons per day (tpd) of source-separated food waste and should be able to digest 300 to 550 tpd by 2020. The biogas will be used to supply electricity to the WWTP and LACSD will deliver excess power into the grid. In addition, the biogas will be used to produce 2,500 gasoline gallon equivalents per day of compressed natural gas vehicle fuel. To read more, click here.

Almond Joy: CEC Poised to Award $10 Million to Advance Aemetis, West Coast Nut Waste-to-Fuels Commercial Project

The California Energy Commission (CEC) plans to award a $5 million grant to the Aemetis Riverbank plant as well as a $5 million grant to West Coast Waste Co. (WCW). In partnership with InEnTec and LanzaTech, Aemetis will use gasification to convert waste biomass into cellulosic ethanol. WCW will partner with Enerkem to use gasification to convert 330,000 tons per year of agricultural biomass into 45 million gallons per year of cellulosic ethanol. The WCW project will be located in Madera County and is expected to receive CEQA approval in the first quarter of 2019. To read more, click here.

SoCalGas Seeks to Offer Renewable Natural Gas to Customers

Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) announced it has filed a request with the California Public Utilities Commission seeking to offer renewable natural gas (RNG) produced from waste and agriculture to its customers. Under the proposed program, millions of Californians would have the option to purchase a portion of their RNG from renewable sources. A 2016 study by the University of California, Davis calculated that California has the potential to produce approximately enough RNG from dairy, landfill, municipal solid waste, and wastewater treatment plant sources to meet the annual needs of around 2.3 million California homes. To read more, click here.

Inside Vanguard Renewables, the Northeast''s Biggest Food Waste Recycler

Vanguard Renewables has developed an anaerobic digestion (AD) facility in Haverhill, Massachusetts. The system can process up to 120 tons per day of food waste. The facility can generate up to 7,700 MWh of electricity per year from the methane. In addition to a 20-year power purchase agreement with the city of Haverhill, Vanguard is providing free heat to a business called Crescent Farms, on whose land the AD facility is located. The AD facility also handles all of the farm''s manure and creates enough liquid fertilizer for their operations. To read more, click here.

Connecticut''s First Anaerobic Digester Adding Depackaging Facility

Quantum Biopower, Connecticut''s first and only anaerobic digester, will soon be expanding from processing 110-120 tons per day to 140 tons per day. Close to 70% of the inbound stream consists of packaged food and beverage material. All material is currently manually sorted and opened before processing, but the facility recently received approval to include a deapackaging operation. Quantum derives revenue from   biogas revenue, a 20-year power purchase agreement with its host municipality, and the sale of digestate as a compost amendment. To read more, click here.

Pneumatic Tubes with Local AD Get Wave of Political Support in New York

ClosedLoops has been pursuing a concept to install pneumatic waste collection tubes in New York since 2013. Recently, many state and local legislators, policymakers, community groups have sent letters asking for backing from Mayor Bill de Blasio''s administration. The tube system could handle up to 60 tons per day from commercial and residential buildings. Initial estimates put capital costs for the pneumatic system at $15.1 million. A 5,000-pound per day anaerobic digestion (AD) facility from Impact BioEnergy is estimated at $2.6 million. The AD facility would generate energy and digestate for use in the High Line park corridor. To read more, click here.

POLICY & LEGISLATION

Could PG&E Bankruptcy Halt Biomass Projects?

Pacific Gas & Electric Co.''s bankruptcy may delay a biomass project and jeopardize funding for similar projects in California. Senate Bill 1122 required PG&E to purchase 47 megawatts of power generated using byproducts of sustainable forest management as part of the Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff (BioMAT) program. PG&E had an informal power purchase agreement with Calaveras Healthy Impact Product Solutions (CHIPS), a nonprofit developing a cogeneration plant in Wilseyville, California. CHIPS is having difficulty securing funding without a legal commitment from PG&E. Biomass projects in Mariposa County and Camptonville, California may also risk losing funding due to PG&E''s bankruptcy. To read more, click here.

CPUC Proposed Revised Pipeline Biogas Standards

The California Council on Science and Technology has recommended several changes to California''s pipeline biogas standards for heating value and siloxanes. The CPUC is proposing to adopt these changes. To read more, click here.

SB 1383 Infrastructure and Market Analysis Draft Report

CalRecycle invited stakeholders to review and provide feedback on a draft report summarizing a study on organics recycling and diversion infrastructure, barriers to infrastructure development, and the status of markets for products generated by organics recycling. The results of this study will be incorporated into a report required by Senate Bill 1383, which requires CalRecycle, in consultation with the California Air Resources Board, to analyze the progress that the waste sector, state government, and local governments have made in reducing organic waste disposal. To read the report, click here.

Introducing the RFS Power Coalition

The Biomass Power Association has partnered with the Energy Recovery Council and the American Biogas Council to form the RFS Power Coalition to create the visibility needed to convince the U.S. EPA to activate the eRIN program this year. When Congress passed an updated version of the RFS in 2007, known as RFS2, it included electricity from qualifying renewable fuels as part of the program. 12 years later, the U.S. EPA has still not administered the program. To read more, click here.

RFS Power Coalition Applauds Passage of Interior Appropriations Bill

The RFS Power Coalition applauded H.J. Res. 31, the spending bill passed by both the House and the Senate. The spending package includes a provision that "strongly encourages" the EPA to process the backlog of applications that electricity producers have submitted to the agency to participate in the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) within 90 days. To read more, click here.