Texas-based WM has opened a $35 million renewable natural gas (RNG) facility at the company’s sprawling Eco Vista landfill south of Arbor Acres Avenue in Springdale. According to a WM news release, the landfill gas-to-energy facility beneficially uses the biogas generated when organic material decomposes in a landfill. RNG is a term used to describe biogas that has been upgraded to replace fossil natural gas. Beginning with the permitting process, it took about two years to bring the RNG facility online at Evo Vista. The facility’s first day up and running was May 24.
“Those are always exciting moments in my world when I get the text message that says we’re flowing gas into the pipe,” said Randy Beck, who heads up WM’s renewable energy group. The Eco Vista facility spans 14,430 square feet. It is expected to recover and distribute approximately 750,000 metric million British thermal units (mmBtu) per year of RNG, which could serve the equivalent of 25,000 households annually or 650 heavy-duty vehicles. The diesel gallon equivalent is one mmBtu of gas equals 6.81 gallons of diesel.
WM will allocate a portion of the RNG for its U.S. fleet of compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles.“The size of that little facility can provide enough gas to power a town,” Beck said. “I think that’s pretty amazing.”