Fort Meade to Burn Gas from Garbage

Discussed here almost a two years ago, the idea of Fort Meade utilizing landfill gas to fuel operations at the base appear close to being formalized.

According to the Sun, county officials have confirmed that methane gas, produced as a result of garbage decomposition at the Millersville landfill will be pumped, via a 5-mile pipeline, to Fort Meade. Currently, the gas is just burned off at the landfill, but the new arrangement will allow the County to raise revenue through the sale of the gas to the base.

This is a great use of the tens of thousands of cubic feet of methane generated by the garbage on a daily basis, and represents, at least in the near term, a renewable source of fuel based right here in the County.

I would urge the County Executive, the Council, and those at the Department of Public Works to consider the potential capture and sell methane gas being produced at the other County landfill facilities in Glen Burnie and Sudley as well.

Vermont Blazes the Renewable Energy Trail with Cow Methane

Today's Sun has an interesting piece describing how Vermont, which is trying to produce 25 percent of its energy from "farms and forests" by 2025, is facilitating the adoption of methane digesters by cow farmers in the state.

The methane is a by-product of cow manure. The liquid portion of the material is spread on fields as fertilizer, while the solids are mixed with bacteria in a heated tank for 3 weeks, which causes methane gas to be released from the brew. The methane is then burned for electricity. In at least one case, in Vermont, the methane operation provides for all of the electrical needs of the farm, plus $45,000 a year in additional revenue from the Central Vermont Public Service Corp.

Interested in doing something locally? It turns out, the Maryland Department of Agriculture is offering $100,000 grants to farmers willing to install methane generators (the generators can cost over $1 million).

Getting Megawatts from Manure

According to Thursday's Sun the Soil Conservation District and the County are considering the possibility of building a biomass power plant at the Sudley Landfill in South County. The thinking is that by burning excess horse manure, and "green waste" (e.g., trees, plants, leaves, grass, etc.) that the County takes in, such a power plant would be a good source of renewable energy.

I'm not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, and I certainly support the stated goal of bolstering renewable energy, but a couple of questions do come to mind: Will locally produced biomass be sufficient to power such a plant, or will it require that trash, or material be hauled in from elsewhere in order to fuel the fire? Burning biomass, while renewable, is still releasing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, a key ingredient exacerbating global warming. What about taking the manure and "green waste" and using them as the drivers for a municipal composting operation, where County residents and farmers could take nutrient rich fertilizer for the home or farm, to substitute for the petroleum-based fertilizers that are so often used in these applications?

Regardless, I look forward to the results of the County's preliminary study.

Planting Trees to Save Power

Today's Post has a good piece on how the Sacramento Municipal Utility District is distributing free trees to its customers to help reduce their electrical load. They've given away roughly 375,000 shade trees over 16 years.

Now We're Cooking with....

Monday's Capital had a story describing how many local pellet stove owners are having difficulty finding fuel this winter. Turns out quite a few people starting hoarding bags of pellets after the hurricanes hit, and the supply has yet to rebound. Pellet stoves are nice because they provide the usual benefits of a wood burning stove using a product for fuel that would generally just go into the waste stream, compressed saw dust. Problem is, there has to be someone compressing the pellets, and as has been evidenced by this situation, that can sometimes be a bottleneck in the process.

A better alternative, I think, is the corn burning stove. These stoves work in much the same way as the pellet burning stoves (in fact, some stoves burn both), except that they burn kernels of corn as fuel. Corn, like wood, is a renewable resource, and it is easily available locally. Some jurisdictions, like Takoma Park, MD have even put up corn silos so that local residents can have easy access to fuel for their stoves.

Perhaps communities in Anne Arundel County could consider something similar. What a great way to support local farmers, kick the fossil fuel habit, and heat your home.

Filling Up on Soy Sauce

Earlier in the week, the Post reported on the growing interest among Maryland farmers in biodiesel. The renewable resource is derived from soy beans and is cleaner burning that petroleum-based fuels.