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Conversion Technology E-Newsletter – June 2019

EVENTS



Alternative Technology Advisory Subcommittee (ATAS) Meeting
June 20, 2019
Alhambra, CA
http://dpw.lacounty.gov/epd/tf/meetings.cfm

2019 Environmental Research & Education Foundation (EREF) Summit on MSW Organics
July 17-18, 2019
San Francisco, CA
https://erefdn.org/event/2019-eref-summit-on-organics/

California Resource Recovery Association (CRRA) 43rd Annual Conference
August 11-14, 2019
Rancho Mirage, CA
http://crra.com/conference

Resource Recycling Conference
August 26-28, 2019
New Orleans, LA
http://rrconference.com/

RNG WORKS 2019 - Technical Workshop & Trade Expo
September 11-12, 2019
Nashville, TN
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/rng-works-2019-technical-workshop-trade-expo-tickets-58940540744
 

US Biogas
October 1-2, 2019
San Diego, CA
https://events.newenergyupdate.com/biogas/

WasteCon 2019
October 21-24, 2019
Phoenix, AZ
https://swana.org/Events/WASTECON.aspx


BioCycle Refor19
October 28-31, 2019
Madison, WI
http://www.biocyclerefor.com/



NEWS

 

Massive Energy Project Could Double Tajiguas Landfill Lifespan
A groundbreaking ceremony was held at Tajiguas Landfill in Santa Barbara County for a $149 million renewable energy project, which has the goal of keeping recyclables and organic waste from being buried in the landfill.  The project will include a facility to identify and sort waste materials and a facility to process organic waste through anaerobic digestion.  There will also be a facility to compost organic waste.  The facilities are expected to be operating by early 2021.  To read more, click here.

Food Scraps Turned into Renewable Energy Sources: How Your Leftovers Can Make A Difference Locally
The City of San Luis Obispo just relaunched its food scraps program. Restaurants and residents can now recycle their food scraps in their green bin. Currently, most green waste in San Luis Obispo County goes to the Kompgas Anaerobic Digestion Facility to be made into renewable energy sources.
 The digester plant processes about 100 tons of green waste a day, producing enough renewable biogas to help power about 600 homes every year. Adding food scraps to the digester will significantly increase the production of renewable biogas.  To read more, click here.

Utica, N.Y., Authority Unveils Facility to Recover Food Scraps for Energy
The Oneida-Herkimer Solid Waste Authority in Utica, New York announced it has completed construction of a new Food2Energy/Source Separated Organics Processing Facility. Participants in the Food2Energy program will be able to deliver bagged and packaged source-separated organics to the $3.4 million processing facility, where packaging will be separated from food scraps. The food scraps will be converted into energy at
the new anerobic digestion system at the Oneida County Water Pollution Control Plant.  To read more, click here.

After Yearlong Delay, Hampden Waste Facility Expects Full Operations by July 1
A new waste processing facility in Hampden, Maine is now accepting deliveries of garbage and recycling from communities across eastern, central and northern Maine. The plant should be commercially operational by July 1. Fiberight has begun testing and operating the front end of its plant, where specialized equipment separates recyclables from other types of waste.  When fully operational, the plant will convert the stream of municipal solid waste into a mix of end products, including cellulose pulp, plastic fuel briquettes, biogas that can be pumped into a Bangor Natural Gas pipeline and recycled plastics and metals.  To read more, click here.

Brightmark Breaks Ground on Plastics-to-
Fuel Facility in Indiana
Brightmark Energy broke ground on the first commercial-scale plastics-to-fuel plant in Ashley, Indiana. The new plant will utilize a state-of-the-art plastics-to-fuel process that recycles waste, including items that cannot readily be recycled, like plastic film, flexible packing, and Styrofoam, into useful products, like fuels and wax. Initially, the facility will convert approximately 100,000 tons of plastics into more than 18 million gallons a year of ultra-low sulfur diesel and naphtha blend stocks and nearly 6 million gallons a year of commercial grade wax. Last month, Brightmark closed a $260 million financing package for the construction of the plant, which includes $185 million in Indiana green bonds.  To read more, click
here.

Utah''''s Rotten, Stinky Food Can Now Be Transformed into Natural Gas and Fertilizer. Grocery Stores and Restaurants Rejoice.
Utah''''''''s first anaerobic food digester began operating in late February, taking in about 100,000 gallons of food waste a day, one-third of its capacity.  The digester took about two years to build and cost $45 million as part of a public-private partnership with the local sewer district and ALPRO Energy & Water. Wasatch Resource Recovery, operator of the digester, expects the facility to be operating at full capacity later this year.  Once at full capacity, the digester is expected to produce enough natural gas to continuously supply a city of 40,000 people.  To read more, click
here.


POLICY & LEGISLATION

New Revised Draft of Senate Bill 1383 Regulations
Senate Bill 1383 (SB 1383) establishes targets to achieve a 50 percent reduction in the level of the statewide disposal of organic waste from the 2014 level by 2020, and a 75 percent reduction by 2025. The law provides CalRecycle the regulatory authority required to achieve the organic waste disposal reduction targets, and establishes an additional target that not less than 20 percent of edible food that is currently disposed of is recovered for human consumption by 2025. CalRecycle will present a new revised draft of the SB 1383 regulations at a public workshop on June 18, 2019 in Diamond Bar, California. A 15-day formal public comment period will begin the following day and run from June 19 - July 3, 2019. More information on the workshop and regulations can be found here

Senate Bill 1383 Infrastructure and Market Analysis Report
CalRecycle published the final version of the Senate Bill 1383 Infrastructure and Market Analysis Report summarizing their research and analysis of anaerobic digestion and composting infrastructure in the state, barriers to organic waste infrastructure development, and the status of markets for products generated by organics recycling. To read the report, click here.

More States Follow California''''s Lead with Low Carbon Fuel Standard Programs
California has developed several different policies and programs to help the state decrease its consumption of fossil fuels, including the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS). On January 1, 2019 the LCFS set a new target to reduce the carbon content of fuel sold in California 20% by 2030. By creating a demand for low, zero, and negative carbon fuels, the LCFS creates a powerful incentive for the recovery, recycling, and reuse of waste products, including municipal wastewater, green waste, food waste, and dairy manure. There are several states that have already adopted, or are considering adoption of, LCFS-like programs.  To read more, click here.

California Funds Biofuel, Renewable Gas Demonstration Projects
The California Energy Commission approved nearly $11 million for clean energy demonstration projects May 15, including those for biofuels, renewable gas and microgrids. A $2 million grant was awarded to Technology & Investment Solutions to demonstrate a more sustainable and cost-effective process of creating biomethane from food waste at an existing anaerobic digester in El Mirage, California. The project will demonstrate a catalytic biogas reforming process to generate hydrogen syngas.  The CEC also awarded a $2 million grant to West Biofuels to fund the development and demonstration of a pilot-scale system to produce renewable gas and value-added alcohols by converting forest residue from high-hazard zones.  Another $2 million grant was awarded to Taylor Energy to find the pilot-scale demonstration of unique pulse-detonation gasification-reforming process to convert forest biomass into high quality renewable gas.  To read more, click here.

Biomethane Becoming the Hallmark Renewable Transportation Fuel
In 2018, renewable natural gas (RNG) on-road fuel use reached an historic high. Of the 645 million gasoline gallon equivalent
s of natural gas used as a motor fuel last year, 32% was renewable. In states with a Low Carbon Fuel Standard program in place, like California, that figure is well over 90%.  RNG fuel can be produced using food waste or agricultural waste, among other sources. RNG fuel in 2018 had a carbon intensity as low as -303.30 according to the California Air Resources Board.  By comparison, California''''''''s electricity grid rated between 25.0 and 38.95. To read more, click here.

Senator Collins and Senator Merkley Lead Letter Urging EPA Action on RFS Electricity Pathway
A bipartisan group of nine Senators, led by Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) and Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Andrew Wheeler this week urging action to activate the renewable electricity pathway in the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The letter follows a provision in the Interior-EPA Appropriations bill signed by President Trump on February 15, 2019 that "strongly encourage(d)"
the EPA to process applications from electricity producers to participate in the RFS within 90 days.  To read more, click here.

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