WARRENTON GREEN INITIATIVE

PATH TO SUSTAINABILITY

Background

Launched in May 2006

Goal: Become the greenest, most sustainable community

How: Do what others are doing and then some

Largest reduction of the carbon footprint in the shortest period of time: 50% reduction by 2015

Be the first community to produce its own electricity and fuel from renewable, sustainable resources

Government actions leading the way - examples:New aquatic center powered by solar and biogasWaste to energy plantZoning for walkable, livable communities

Business actions following close behind - examples:Green building codeThree new office buildings powered by geothermal energyNew, 40,000 sq.ft. office building contains 40% recyclable construction materials

Household actions right in sync:Town government newsletter, Town Crier, recommends ways to save energy and money:

use EnergyStar productsinstall a programmable thermostatlet the sun shine ininflate your tires

THE PLAN

THE PLAN• Zero waste - don’t waste the wastes

• Reduce, reuse, recycle

• Recycle wastes into energy for sustainability

• Lead by example and engage the community

Getting there from here - examples of ways to reduce GHG:

Plant a tree - 2,000 lbs of GHG prevented

Turn off & unplug electrical appliances -1,000 lbs annually p/household

Wash clothes in cold water - 1,150 lbs annually per household

Waste-to-energy plant - 75,000 tons annually

Retrofit government buildings - 8,000 tons annually

Change traffic lights to LEDs - 2,400 tons annually

Local Energy Independence

Communities can become energy-independent from wastes and residues found in their own backyards

Technology has arrived to efficiently produce electricity and fuel from a variety of wastes

There should be enough trash being dumped at the landfill that cannot be recycled to electrify every single home in the community

Some towns in Europe are doing this through district heating plants

Landfills represent a huge, untapped source of electricity and fuel

300 million tons of MSW and 300 million tons of C&D are dumped at landfillsThat’s 30 million homes powered with green electricity or 20 billion gallons of ethanol

The President and Congress want 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel, ethanol and biodiesel, by 2020

Corn ethanol and biodiesel only gets us to 20 billion gallons

Food vs. fuel debate

Ecology vs. fuel debate

Communities can fill the gap

Local energy production is much more efficient and less polluting than what we have now with large, centralized power plants and immense grid systems

Small, 5 MW to 30 MW plants close to the consumer on distributed electricity are more secure, more reliable, and cheaper than 100 MW to 2,000 MW plants

The price of trash and wastes is not subject to geopolitics and commodity traders

Local Energy Independence

LANDFILLS ARE LIABILITIES

Turning a liability into an asset:• Accumulation of municipal solid waste is

a serious problem with worldwide environmental consequences

• Land is becoming scarce and landfills are filling up

– For example, one of the L.A. county landfills will close in 2010 and the best option is to rail the MSW 120 miles into the Nevada desert

• Burying trash in a hole releases methane gas—24 times more toxic than carbon dioxide—and leachate into the groundwater

• Every 2 tons of trash buried in a hole emits 1 ton of greenhouse gases

– Our small plant will prevent 75,000 tons of GHG

How Will It Work?

The centerpiece is a public-private partnership

A commercial company will build, operate, and maintain the plant

The community will provide space for the plant at the municipal landfill

Infrastructure is already in place

Environmental permits have already been issued

Landfill operating expenses will greatly decrease

Less trash must be buried

Less landfill maintenance will be required

The community will realize a profit

The sale of locally produced fuel

The sale of electricity to the grid

Landfill maintenance never ends…

What Can Be Used?

Almost anything:

Household trash

MSW

C&D

Restaurant waste

Tree clippings

Agricultural residues

Sewer sludge

Animal manures and wastes

Used tires

Auto shredded material“Put Warrenton on a low carbon diet.”

—Mayor George B. Fitch

WASTES & RESIDUES

• Municipal solid waste– 75% to 80% organic; of this:

• Paper 35%• Yard trimmings 13%• Food scraps 12%• Plastics 12%

• Commercial debris (construction & demolition)– 50% organic; of this:

• Wood 60%• Used tires—much higher carbon/BTU (22,000 vs. 5,000 BTU)• Restaurant wastes• Oil filters• High-moisture wastes:

– Animal manures, including poultry litter• The new Biogas Production Incentive Act should greatly spur this development

• Sewer sludge• The technology is not quite there to be able to combine high-moisture and low-moisture

wastes—right now, they need separate operations

Preliminary Screening Feedstock Summary Table – 50 mi. radius

Feedstock

Feedstock

Cost/ Benefit

MSW 9,491,403 tons/yr$20 - $30 per ton

tipping fee

Forest Thinnings 426,197 dry tons/yr $25 - $39 per ton

Forest Residues 378,133 dry tons/yr $20 - $27 per ton

Mill Residues 421,628 dry tons/yr $10 - $35 per ton

Manufacturing and Urban Wood Residues

1,517,437 dry tons/yr Tipping fee - $23 per ton

Corn Stover 456,545 dry tons/yr $53 - $60 per ton

Switchgrass Potential 130,869 dry tons/yr $50 - $70 per ton

Animal Manures 1,241,335 dry tons/yr $20 to $30 per ton

Resource Potential

Primary Mill Wood Residues Potential Key Supplier

Companies that showed potential as being key suppliers were contacted directly. Three companies in particular were selected and are listed below.

• Rock Hill Lumber, Culpeper VA: This company is a sawing and planning mill. They generate 1,000 tons/month of green chips at a price of $24/ton and 700 tons/month of sawdust at $12.50/ton. Delivery costs range between $2.50-$3.00/ton. Rock Hill can offer guaranteed consistent delivery to Warrenton at reduced prices for a steady supply.

•Merrilat, Culpeper VA: This furniture manufacturing company disposes of a large amount of wood wastes (skids, doors, boards). The material is currently sent to the Culpeper transfer station to be landfilled. Merrilat is very interested in working out a deal with Warrenton for the wood wastes.

• North American Housing Corp., Front Royal, VA: NAHC constructs modular homes and in the process generates much wood waste. There is no current market for the wastes which are sent to the Front Royal landfill. This company would be willing to negotiate with Warrenton for the material.

Monthly wood waste supply estimates are currently being sought from Merrilat and NAHC.

BenefitsThis not your traditional waste-to-energy plant with tall smokestakes burning garbage.

There are hardly any emissions and it is well within EPA and State environmental regulations.

The closed loop biomass plant will:

generate its own power

require not one ounce of fossil fuels

produce negligible particulate emissions

pay for itself, not require taxpayer dollars                

make a community energy independent

be scalable as more feedstocks are captured

not divert food crops like corn and beans to make renewable fuels

capture methane leaking from landfills

free up space needed for landfills

return idle farmaland into production of dedicated energy crops

reduce the carbon footprint for the community“Modern” waste-to-energy plant

ECONOMICS OF WASTE TO ENERGY

• A small-scale plant must have negative feedstock cost– The tipping fee must go to the plant

• Revenues from tipping fees produce almost as much as the revenue from electricity sales

• Capital costs are very high, so operating costs must be low• If we can afford large negative feedstock costs from MSW and C&D,

then we can afford to buy other feedstocks like wood chips– If we get paid a tipping fee of $40/ton to take MSW and C&D, then we can afford

to pay $25/ton for wood chips• Operating costs can be kept low by a low-interest loan from the Rural Utilities Service

of the USDA• 5% interest and a 35-year term vs. 9.5% interest and 20 years—from private sources

—would reduce debt payments by nearly $1 million per year• The gasification process yields 1,100 KWH per ton of MSW vs. 300 KWH from

traditional mass-burn (incinerator) plants. The plasma process yields 1,500 KWH but at a higher capital cost.