million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd)

 - OR - or

standard cubic feet per minute (scfm)

tons CH4/yr tons CO2/yr

0 0

Equivalent to any one of the following annual benefits:

Environmental Benefits Environmental Benefits Environmental Benefits

Energy Benefits (based on project size entered):

• Heating __ homes: 0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

• Annual greenhouse gas emissions from __ 

passenger vehicles:

• Carbon sequestered annually by __ acres of pine or 

fir forests:

• CO2 emissions from __ barrels of oil consumed:

• CO2 emissions from __ gallons of gasoline 

consumed:

• Annual greenhouse gas emissions from __ 

passenger vehicles:

• Carbon sequestered annually by __ acres of pine 

or fir forests:

• CO2 emissions from __ barrels of oil consumed:

• CO2 emissions from __ gallons of gasoline 

consumed:

[Total = Direct + Avoided]

 For electricity generation projects,

 enter megawatt (MW) capacity:

 For direct-use projects,

 enter landfill gas utilized by project:

tons of methane per year

tons of carbon dioxide

per year

tons of methane per 

year

tons of carbon 

dioxide per year

MMTCO2E/yr tons CO2/yr MMTCO2E/yr

Emission Reductions and Environmental and Energy Benefits for Landfill Gas Energy Projects

million metric tons of carbon 

dioxide equivalents per year

Direct Equivalent Emissions Reduced Avoided Equivalent Emissions Reduced Total Equivalent Emissions Reduced

million metric tons of carbon 

dioxide equivalents per year

million metric tons of carbon 

dioxide equivalents per year

[Reduction of methane emitted directly from the landfill] [Offset of carbon dioxide from avoiding the use of fossil fuels]

• CO2 emissions from __ gallons of gasoline 

consumed:

MMTCO2E/yr

0.0000

tons CH4/yr

0

0

0

0

0

For additional environmental benefit options, view the Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator on the EPA Clean Energy website.

0 0.0000

Equivalent to any one of the following annual benefits:

View Calculations and References

Equivalent to any one of the following annual benefits:

0.0000

• Annual greenhouse gas emissions from __ 

passenger vehicles:

• Carbon sequestered annually by __ acres of pine 

or fir forests:

• CO2 emissions from __ barrels of oil consumed:

LFGE Benefits Calculator

http://www.epa.gov/lmop/projects-candidates/lfge-calculator.html Page 1 of 4 Last updated 12/1/10
Factors Used in the Calculations:

Conversion Factors

8,760 hours/year

365 days/year

24 hours/day

60 minutes/hour

1E+03 kilowatts/megawatt

2,000 pounds/short ton

0.9072 metric tons/short ton

1E+06 metric tons/million metric tons

1E+06 standard cubic feet/million standard cubic feet

Methane Conversions

0.0423 pounds methane/standard cubic foot methane

0.50 standard cubic feet methane/standard cubic foot landfill gas

Heating Values and Heat Rates

1,012 Btu/standard cubic foot methane [Ref: Chemical Engineers’ Handbook . John H Perry, ed. McGraw-Hill Book Company: New York, 1963. Pg 9-9.]

1,050 Btu/standard cubic foot natural gas [Ref: Compilation of Air Pollutant Emission Factors (AP-42) . US EPA. Volume 1, Fifth Edition. Sept 1985. Appd A, Pg A-6.]

11,700 Btu/kilowatt-hour (weighted average for engines, gas turbines, and boiler/steam turbines)

Emission Factors

1.32 pounds carbon dioxide/kilowatt-hour (estimated average electric power plant emission rate for 2011)

0.12059 pounds carbon dioxide/standard cubic foot natural gas [Ref: Instructions for Long Form EIA-1605, Voluntary Reporting of GHGs . US DOE/EIA. May 2005. Appd B.]

(PDF, 72 pp, 354K)

Capacity and Other Factors

0.93 gross capacity factor for generation units of electricity projects (to account for availability and operating load)

0.85 net capacity factor for generation units of electricity projects (to account for availability, operating load, and parasitic losses)

0.91 factor for power delivered to households for electricity projects (to account for transmission and distribution losses)

0.90 gross capacity factor for direct-use projects (to account for availability of landfill gas)

Global Warming Potentials (GWPs)

21 GWP of methane

Calculations and References Return to Tool

http://www.epa.gov/ttn/chief/ap42/appendix/appa.pdf (PDF, 32 pp, 104K)

ftp://ftp.eia.doe.gov/pub/oiaf/1605/cdrom/pdf/FormEIA-1605_2004_Instructions.pdf

LFGE Benefits Calculator

http://www.epa.gov/lmop/projects-candidates/lfge-calculator.html Page 2 of 4 Last updated 12/1/10
Calculations and References Return to Tool

Direct Equivalent Emissions Reduced Calculations for Electricity Generation Projects:

Avoided Equivalent Emissions Reduced Calculations for Electricity Generation Projects:

Direct Equivalent Emissions Reduced Calculations for Direct-Use Projects:

Avoided Equivalent Emissions Reduced Calculations for Direct-Use Projects:

MMTCO2E/yr = million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) of LFG utilized * 0.90 [gross capacity factor] * (365 days/year) *

(1E+06 standard cubic feet/million standard cubic feet) * (0.5 standard cubic feet methane/standard cubic foot landfill gas) *

(1,012 Btu/standard cubic foot methane) / (1,050 Btu/standard cubic foot natural gas) * (0.12059 pounds carbon dioxide/standard cubic foot natural gas) /

(2,000 pounds/short ton) * (0.9072 metric tons/short ton) / (1E+06 metric tons/million metric tons)

tons CO2/yr = MMTCO2E/yr * (1E+06 metric tons/million metric tons) / (0.9072 metric tons/short ton)

MMTCO2E/yr = megawatts (MW) of generating capacity * 0.93 [gross capacity factor] * (8,760 hours/year) * (1,000 kilowatts/megawatt) *

(11,700 Btu/kilowatt-hour) / (1,012 Btu/standard cubic foot methane) * (0.0423 pounds methane/standard cubic foot methane) / (2,000 pounds/short ton) *

(0.9072 metric tons/short ton) / (1E+06 metric tons/million metric tons) * 21 [GWP of methane]

tons CH4/yr = MMTCO2E/yr * (1E+06 metric tons/million metric tons) / (0.9072 metric tons/short ton) / 21 [GWP of methane]

tons CO2/yr = MMTCO2E/yr * (1E+06 metric tons/million metric tons) / (0.9072 metric tons/short ton)

tons CH4/yr = MMTCO2E/yr * (1E+06 metric tons/million metric tons) / (0.9072 metric tons/short ton) / 21 [GWP of methane]

MMTCO2E/yr = megawatts (MW) of generating capacity * 0.85 [net capacity factor] * (8,760 hours/year) * (1,000 kilowatts/megawatt) *

(1.32 pounds carbon dioxide/kilowatt-hour) / (2,000 pounds/short ton) * (0.9072 metric tons/short ton) / (1E+06 metric tons/million metric tons)

MMTCO2E/yr = million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) of LFG utilized * (365 days/year) * (1E+06 standard cubic feet/million standard cubic feet) *

(0.5 standard cubic feet methane/standard cubic foot landfill gas) * (0.0423 pounds methane/standard cubic foot methane) / (2,000 pounds/short ton) *

(0.9072 metric tons/short ton) / (1E+06 metric tons/million metric tons) * 21 [GWP of methane]

LFGE Benefits Calculator

http://www.epa.gov/lmop/projects-candidates/lfge-calculator.html Page 3 of 4 Last updated 12/1/10
Calculations and References Return to Tool

Environmental and Energy Benefit Equivalencies:

5.23 metric tons carbon dioxide equivalent per vehicle per year

4.69 metric tons carbon dioxide per acre of pine or fir forests per year

191.5 metric tons carbon dioxide per railcar of coal

0.43 metric tons carbon dioxide per barrel of oil

0.00889 metric tons carbon dioxide per gallon of gasoline

11,476 kilowatt-hours per household (average annual electricity usage)

67,075 cubic feet of natural gas per household (average annual household heating usage; transmission and distribution losses considered negligible)

References

• For passenger vehicles: (1) Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2007 . Tables 3-12, 3-13, and 3-14. U.S. EPA, Washington, DC. U.S. #430-R-09-004.

(2) Highway Statistics 2007 . Office of Highway Policy Information, Federal Highway Administration. Table VM-1.

• For acres of forest:

(1) Nabuurs, G.J., and G.M.J. Mohren. 1995. Modelling analysis of potential carbon sequestration in selected forest types . Canadian Journal of Forest Research 25(7):1157-1172.

(2) Shan, J.P., L.A. Morris, and R.L. Hendrick. 2001. The effects of management on soil and plant carbon sequestration in slash pine plantations . Journal of Applied Ecology 38(5):932-941. 

(3) 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories . Prepared by the National Greenhouse Gas Inventories Programme. Published: IGES, Japan. Volume 4.

• For railcars of coal: (1) Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: Fast Facts 1990-2006. Conversion Factors to Energy Units (Heat Equivalents) Heat Contents

and Carbon Content Coefficients of Various Fuel Types . U.S. EPA, Washington, DC. #430-F-08-005. 

(2) Hancock, Kathleen and Sreekanth, Ande. Conversion of Weight of Freight to Number of Railcars . Transportation Research Board, Paper 01-2056, 2001. 

(3) 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories . Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Geneva, Switzerland.

• For barrels of oil: (1) Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: Fast Facts 1990-2005. Conversion Factors to Energy Units (Heat Equivalents) Heat Contents

and Carbon Content Coefficients of Various Fuel Types . U.S. EPA, Washington, DC. #430-R-07-002. 

(2) 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories . Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Geneva, Switzerland.

• For gallons of gasoline: (1) Emission Facts: Average Carbon Dioxide Emissions Resulting from Gasoline and Diesel Fuel . U.S. EPA #420-F-05-001.

(2) 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories . Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Geneva, Switzerland.

• For households: 2005 Residential Energy Consumption Survey: Consumption and Expenditures Tables . US DOE/EIA. Tbls US2 & US3.

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2007/vm1.cfm

http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/downloads/2007GHGFastFacts.pdf (PDF, 2 pp, 216K). 

http://www.ipcc-nggip.iges.or.jp/public/2006gl/index.htm

http://www.ipcc-nggip.iges.or.jp/public/2006gl/index.htm

Available at http://www.ipcc-nggip.iges.or.jp/public/2006gl/index.htm

Available at http:/www.epa.gov/oms/climate/420f05001.htm

http://www.ipcc-nggip.iges.or.jp/public/2006gl/index.htm

http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/recs/recs2005/c&e/detailed_tables2005c&e.html

http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/downloads/2008_GHG_Fast_Facts.pdf (PDF, 2 pp, 430K). 

Environmental factors are from the Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator 

on the EPA Clean Energy website at 

http://www.epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-resources/calculator.html

http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/emissions/downloads09/Energy.pdf (PDF, 66 pp, 737K)

LFGE Benefits Calculator

http://www.epa.gov/lmop/projects-candidates/lfge-calculator.html Page 4 of 4 Last updated 12/1/10