Elizabeth Riley and Neil Pierson today took part in a site tour of the Belrose Waste and Recycling Centre. WSN Environmental Solutions’ Belrose Waste and Recycling Centre continues to transform household rubbish into green power, generating enough renewable energy from the Belrose landfill to power 1,000 homes all year round. Methane from the biogas created during the breakdown of household waste in the landfill is combusted to create electricity by a 1.1 megawatt (MW) engine which is owned and operated by power company Energy Developments Limited (EDL).
There are currently 93 gas wells on-line at Belrose. These gas wells provide up to 680 m3/hr of landfill gas for one engine unit (1 MWh). The first gas wells were installed in 1994 and the system has been progressively expanded throughout the years helping to reduce the escape of methane and related smells. The renewable energy created is then exported to the NSW Energy Grid. The extra capacity gives householders and businesses the option of purchasing 100 per cent renewable energy from their energy provider.
The process avoids 44,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions each year - the equivalent of taking 10,000 average cars off the road for a year. It also saves 22 million litres of water per year when compared with a traditional coal-fired power station generating the same amount of electricity – enough to fill nine Olympic-sized swimming pools.
The Belrose landfill receives waste from approximately 265,000 residents in the Manly, Mosman, Pittwater and Warringah Council areas. The landfill gas to energy project is helping the local community to manage the climate change impacts of the waste it generates. Renewable energy is at the forefront of the fight against climate change and landfill gas capture is a crucial interim measure as we move towards more advanced waste technology.
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