Columbus Consolidated Government
Referrals From Mayor and Council-03/30/2010
Subject Waste to Energy
Description During a Council Work Session, have the staff to make a
presentation and provide a timeline on the Waste to Energy project and present
some numbers and advise as to when we can expect to see this project to come
online. (Request of Councilor Allen)
Received From
Assigned To Gary Stickles, Ron Smith, David Arrington, Lisa Goodwin,
Isaiah Hugley
Please enter a date mm/dd/yy before any comments are added.
Response The City has formed a project team to work on the
Recycling/Sustainability Center project. As part of this project we are
working with our architects to select an Environmental Engineering Consulting
Firm to develop a comprehensive waste management masterplan to include but not
limited to waste to energy, gas to energy, alternative fuel development,
composting, partnerships for an expanded recycling program, process flow
recommendations for our current recycling program and development of a
Sustainability Learning Center. As part of this effort, we have an
engineering firm conducting an assessment of the methane production at Pine
Grove landfill to determine our current energy potential from the site. The
Environmental Engineering Consulting Firm selected by the City will provide a
time table for completing the study, but we anticipate the study to be
completed in the fall.
It is difficult at this time to estimate how long it will take to bring a Waste
to Energy plant on line since a new WTE facility hasn't been permitted in
Georgia in the last 20+ years. However, based on the discussions with experts
in the field an aggressive time frame for development of a WTE facility is
approximately 5 years from concept development. Due to the City and the
region being close to non-attainment for air quality, the options for a WTE
facility will have to include relatively new technology that does not have an
adverse impact on local air quality. It is important that we proceed
cautiously in selecting a proven technology that will accomplish our objectives
of reducing waste, producing energy and protecting local air quality.
It would be my recommendation that staff provide a full briefing to Council
once the Comprehensive Waste Management Masterplan has been developed by our
engineering consultants and more definitive information is available
concerning the options available to the community.
David
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