Company to create electricity using methane gas in DeKalb Co. | News

DEKALB COUNTY, AL (WAFF)- The DeKalb County Commission
approved sales and property tax breaks for a company that plans to create
electricity with the help of a local landfill.

The company plans to make
use of methane gas that's generated through the deterioration of household
waste.

Right now, the gas is just
being burned off. The goal is to create electricity and sell it to TVA.

Tax revenues will be
immediately generated for the school, which are estimated at $100,000 over the
next 10 years.

Officials with Energy Developments along with the Economic Development Authority presented their case
for approval to the county commission Tuesday morning.

The company plans to begin
construction this week at the Sand Valley Landfill in Collinsville.

Methane gas is currently
being taken from beneath the ground where solid waste is buried and is burned.

Company officials said
they plan to divert that gas to fuel three large caterpillar generators to make
electricity. It's expected to produce about five megawatts of electricity per
hour.

With a price tag of just
over $5-million, company officials said it's a sensible investment.

"The electricity that
is generated is renewable, so it's a green product and it's taking an otherwise
wasted resource and putting it to a beneficial use," said Dennis
Bollinger, Energy Developments VP.

Bollinger said they hope
to be operational by September.

Scottsboro and Decatur are
the only two facilities like this in Alabama.

While much smaller than
the proposed operation in Dekalb County, generators at Scottsboro's landfill
just north of Hollywood have been operational now for about 16 months.

That facility was
constructed at a cost of just over a million dollars, but costs were
significantly reduced through a federal grant.

So far, it's paying off in
more ways than one.

"Well, we are going
to be able to generate some extra income above expenses for the city, and
that's our main concern," said Scottsboro Solid Waste Director, Eddie
Blizzard. "Our secondary concern is the destruction of the methane gas,
which we are required by the EPA to do."

Officials with the DeKalb
facility estimate that once the landfill has used its useful life for garbage
collection they will be able to continue generating electricity for an
additional 15 to 20 years.

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