Eco-system turns organic waste into power

Mike Guilford’s self-contained waste remediation system could be a game-changer for commercial waste producers.

His invention, which came about after he drew the idea on a whiteboard about 11 years ago, can convert any organic material into methane gas by a process of anaerobic digestion. The gas runs a generator plant, which in turn powers the system – meaning no energy bills.

The plant, housed in two shipping containers, breaks down up to about 80 per cent of solid matter, with the only byproduct a thin, tea-coloured material.

However, this can be used as liquid fertiliser, or run through a water treatment plant and cleaned up, then used for washdowns. ‘‘We want a 100 per cent recycle out of the system,’’ Guilford said. ‘‘It’s actually really old technology but we’ve just resurrected it and revamped it and we’re turning anything organic ... into methane.’’

Anthony Lee, Bio Engineering’s operations manager, said anything organically based that would break down could go through the system. ‘‘At the moment we’re putting in ... the stomach contents that come out of a freezing works.’’ The pair will trial other materials over the next few months, including onion waste. Once the business gets into full production, Guilford hopes to export the system.

Three years ago, Guilford, who has been in the water treatment business for more than two decades, was told by a colleague in Perth that he knew of somebody who wanted to invest in building a system like the one Guilford has created. That sparked the idea to build a test plant, and he has been running trials ever since. Now, he is about ready to commercialise it.

‘‘We’ve already sold our first three, just locally. We intend to expand to Australia ... and we’ve already got contacts in Vietnam, Sweden and South Africa.’’

Construction of those would start within the next three months. Guilford has contracted out some of the engineering of the system but did most of the work himself. At the moment, the plant sits in a paddock near Hastings.

Guilford said the system lent itself to ‘‘all sorts of industries’’.

‘‘I used to build wastewater plants for wineries, and a byproduct of that was this sludge ... getting rid of that sludge that was a problem, and that’s when I came up with the idea.’’