Powering Businesses, Homes and Vehicles with Waste
Channel: eesionline
Date: 2017-05-23

How to Grow the Economy & Jobs with Biogas & Renewable Natural Gas

More information at: http://www.eesi.org/briefings/view/052317biogas

Speakers:

Bernie Sheff
Vice President of Engineering, ES Engineering Services, LLC; Chairman, American Biogas Council
Download Slides: http://www.eesi.org/files/Bernie_Sheff_052317.pdf
Skip to presentation: https://youtu.be/eDx8bqguOzk?t=2m20s

Johannes Escudero
CEO, Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas
Download Slides: http://www.eesi.org/files/Johannes_Escudero_052317.pdf
Skip to presentation: https://youtu.be/eDx8bqguOzk?t=11m41s

Grant Zimmerman
CEO, ampCNG
Download Slides: http://www.eesi.org/files/Grant_Zimmerman_052317.pdf
Skip to presentation: https://youtu.be/eDx8bqguOzk?t=22m20s

Caroline Henry
Vice President, Marketing, quasar energy group
Download Slides: http://www.eesi.org/files/Caroline_Henry_052317.pdf
Skip to presentation: https://youtu.be/eDx8bqguOzk?t=34m35s

Luke Morrow
Managing Director, Morrow Renewables
Download Slides: http://www.eesi.org/files/Luke_Morrow_052317.pdf
Skip to presentation: https://youtu.be/eDx8bqguOzk?t=44m38s

Brian Meek
Director of Plant Operations, Avant Energy
Download Slides: http://www.eesi.org/files/Brian_Meek_052317.pdf
Skip to presentation: https://youtu.be/eDx8bqguOzk?t=53m44s

Patrick Serfass
Executive Director, American Biogas Council
Download Slides: http://www.eesi.org/files/Patrick_Serfass_052317.pdf
Skip to presentation: https://youtu.be/eDx8bqguOzk?t=1h03m31s

Question & Answer Session
https://youtu.be/eDx8bqguOzk?t=1h14m30s


The American Biogas Council (ABC), the Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas (CRNG) and the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) held a briefing about the untapped energy in domestic wastes. Waste streams—including manure, agricultural waste, waste water, food scraps and landfill gases—can be converted to biogas and upgraded to renewable natural gas (RNG) for electricity, pipeline injection, or vehicle use, while also providing valuable products such as fertilizer and compost. Using these products provides local jobs, improves air and water quality, assists in meeting multi-agency nutrient management strategies and helps to meet multiple policy goals espoused in both the Farm Bill and the Renewable Fuel Standard.

Currently, most waste streams represent a missed opportunity. The United States produces over 70 million tons of organic wastes per year (food waste, manure, agricultural waste), yet only a small portion is used to make RNG, biogas and a variety of soil amendments (fertilizers, composts, peat moss replacement). According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Department of Energy, Environmental Protection Agency, and the American Biogas Coalition, 8,241 dairy and swine farms, 3,888 wastewater treatment facilities, over 400 landfills and nearly 1,000 stand-alone food waste systems could be producing biogas, RNG and other commercial products from wet wastes.

These wastes can cause significant pollution problems. However, if utilized, they can reduce costs associated with waste remediation, provide value-added products and new revenue streams. Moreover, developing all the potential projects above would catalyze an estimated $40 billion in capital deployment for construction activity, resulting in approximately 335,000 short-term construction jobs and 23,000 permanent jobs to run the digesters and produce raw biogas.

Making RNG from biogas creates additional jobs and investment. Since 2014, 53 existing RNG facilities have created 4,000 direct and indirect jobs. Forty new RNG projects a year over the next decade could create as many as 70,000 additional domestic jobs—in rural and urban communities— adding $6.5 billion to the economy.

State waste resources are diverse and numerous. Briefing attendees had the opportunity to learn about the potential resources in their states, as well as economic and job opportunities, and policy drivers.