The City of Boulder has finalized an agreement with Western Disposal for the sale of renewable natural gas (RNG) generated at the city’s Water Resources Recovery Facility (WRRF). The RNG, which will be produced from biogas, will fuel up to 38 of the 56 commercial vehicles Western Disposal uses to serve Boulder and Broomfield Counties. Converting to RNG is expected to reduce county-wide carbon emissions by the equivalent of 265,000 gallons of diesel fuel per year.
“Reducing emissions from the transportation sector is one of the key priorities in our local climate efforts, and the City of Boulder is working more closely than ever with business leaders to pursue the many diverse approaches for reducing emissions,” said Jonathan Koehn, chief sustainability and resilience officer at the City of Boulder. “The transition to renewable energy is taking many forms, and utilizing the renewable natural gas created locally will decrease our reliance on fossil fuels and provide important clean air benefits.”
“Western Disposal was one of the first waste haulers in Colorado to convert from diesel to compressed natural gas for its vehicle fleet, and this partnership with Boulder to use its RNG is another step forward in reducing our carbon emissions,” said Mike Seader, vice president of operations at Western Disposal. “We’ve been serving Boulder and the surrounding communities for 50 years, and we are absolutely committed to being a key partner in helping the community meet their climate goals.”
The RNG will be produced by a new system at the WRRF that will convert biogas, which is derived from the breakdown of organic matter in sewage, into RNG. The city anticipates construction of the new system to be completed in July 2020.