Idaho landfill to start turning trash into gas energy in May


Save Story

Estimated read time: Less than a minute

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

BURLEY, Idaho (AP) — Officials say a landfill in southern Idaho could start producing enough energy to power 2,500 homes as early as May.

The Times-News newspaper reports that the Milner Butte Landfill near the town of Burley produces methane and other gas from millions of tons of decomposing garbage. Currently the local solid waste district has to burn those gases, but work on a new plan by Southern Idaho Solid Waste Executive Director Josh Bartlome is almost complete.

By using two Siemens locomotive engines to convert the landfill gas to energy, the landfill can sell that power and use the money to help keep landfill use costs low.

Bartlome says the gas-to-energy facility should be up and running in May, generating about 2.6 megawatts of power.

The Milner Butte Landfill serves seven counties, taking in about 240,000 tons of garbage last year.

___

Information from: The Times-News, http://www.magicvalley.com

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Most recent Idaho stories

Related topics

The Associated Press

    STAY IN THE KNOW

    Get informative articles and interesting stories delivered to your inbox weekly. Subscribe to the KSL.com Trending 5.
    By subscribing, you acknowledge and agree to KSL.com's Terms of Use and Privacy Notice.
    Newsletter Signup

    KSL Weather Forecast

    KSL Weather Forecast
    Play button