Washington, D.C. – The House passed the Energy and Water Appropriations Bill on Thursday that included $500,000 for a landfill project in Buncombe County to generate electricity from methane, Rep. Heath Shuler announced.
The Buncombe County landfill recirculates its leachate flow, or landfill liquid, that speeds up trash decomposition and creates the ability to put more waste in the same amount of landfill space. Methane gas is generated in the process and currently is burned off.
The new federal money would help the project expand its leachate recirculation and increase production of methane, which then would be burned to generate enough electricity to power hundreds of homes. The state-of-the-art landfill also further hastens the decomposition of trash.
“This project will lead to less space being needed for landfills in the future,” said Rep. Shuler, D-Waynesville. “As a bonus, it will create electricity that will be sold to the power grid, which means less fossil fuel will have to be burned.”
The House passed the $33.5 billion Energy and Water Appropriations Bill, which also included money for a flood reduction study along the Swannanoa River. The Senate is expected to pass the bill next week before being sent to President Obama for his signature.
In 2004, the remnants of Hurricanes Frances and Ivan caused the Swannanoa River to flood, which damaged roads and wrecked water mains. The new federal funds will allow the Army Corps of Engineers to increase its efforts to study projects that can reduce flooding.
“We can’t stop heavy rains or hurricanes, but we can take steps to reduce the chances of extreme flooding on the Swannanoa River, and this study will take a big step forward,” Rep. Shuler said.
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