Waste Management partners with Will County to jointly develop landfill gas-to-energy plant in Illinois
Company logo of Waste Management Inc. and the official seal of Will County. Images sourced from Waste Management Inc. and Will County. Waste Management, Inc., a leading provider of waste management solutions in North America, has announced a joint plan with officials of Will County in Illinois to develop a landfill gas-to-energy plant at the Prairie View Recycling and Disposal Facility near Wilmington, Illinois.
Under the plans announced on May 21, Will County and Waste Management will partner to develop a landfill gas-to-energy plant at the Prairie View facility, which will generate electricity to be distributed over the area’s electrical transmission grid.
Waste Management will be in charge of the construction and operation of the landfill plant, which is expected to be fully operational by the end of next year. The facility will initially consist of three to four reciprocating engines, which will produce 2.4 to 3.2 megawatts (MW) of energy. The facility will generate a total electrical output of approximately 18 million kilowatt-hours annually, which will be delivered to the ComEd distribution lines to power more than 2,000 households in Will County.
Will County will help finance the project by applying for federal economic stimulus funds geared for renewable energy projects. Will County anticipates receiving at least $1 million in stimulus funds for the project once the grant is approved.
According to County Executive Larry Walsh, the project will create a non-fossil fuel energy source and will also provide local construction jobs for the residents of Will County. The County owns the Prairie View landfill and its waste disposal facility, which opened in January 2004. Waste Management operates the site under a long-term agreement and has constructed the landfill’s gas recovery system, which includes a series of gas collection wells drilled into the buried wastes. These wells are connected to a network of pipes attached to a vacuum source that draws the gas from the landfill. This gas is currently being burned in a flare, but will be used as fuel to power the electricity-generating engines when the power plant is completed.
Waste Management is the pioneer of landfill gas-to-energy technology in North America. The company has more than 100 landfill gas-to-energy projects, which produce almost 500 MW of power, enough to supply energy to 400,000 homes. Waste Management also operates 11 plants in Illinois that generate a total of 41.5 MW of electricity, enough to meet the electricity needs of more than 35,000 homes and replace the equivalent of more than 150,000 tons of coal annually. The company is planning to construct 60 more plants by 2013.
Waste Management Inc. provides waste management services for residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in North America. The company also develops waste-to-energy and landfill gas-to-energy facilities in the United States. Its headquarters is located in Houston, Texas.
- Natassia Y. Laforteza
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