Possible landfill project could generate revenue by capturing methane
A possible landfill project could capture methane and turn it into a revenue-generating source for the municipality while also contributing to the federal government’s goal of reducing greenhouse gases. During its Aug. 12 regular meeting, city council voted 5-2 to proceed with a landfill gas evaluation for $50,000. Councillors Brian Swanson and Scott McMann were opposed.
Methane — a harmful greenhouse gas — is produced at a landfill from decomposing waste, according to the engineering department. There are several passive wells installed to vent the gas and ensure it does not build up and explode. Landfills account for 20 per cent of all methane releases in Canada.
It is possible to capture this gas and convert it into electricity, the report continued. SaskPower would purchase this electricity and distribute into the electrical grid. There is the potential to generate $100,000 to $250,000 based on similar systems in Regina and Saskatoon.
This motion was part of a package of motions — but voted on separately — that dealt with enhancing solid waste management. Council voted unanimously on three other motions to:
• Proceed with the design for remediation of a leachate leak on the landfill’s east face for $50,000. The engineering department will have an analysis completed to determine the scope and recommend repair methods. City administration does not believe the leak has migrated, but is concerned it could happen
• Purchase 10 portable wind fences for litter control for $90,000. There are already six such fences to capture windblown litter and prevent it from leaving the site. The fences can be used elsewhere if necessary
• Install one additional groundwater monitoring well for $17,500. There are 15 active monitoring wells already in and around the landfill that monitor for the migration of heavy metals and other hazardous materials, plus the metals’ proximity to, and potential to pollute, existing water systems.
All four motions will be funded from the solid waste reserve.
The total cost for all four projects is $207,500.
Background
Five budget enhancements specific to the solid waste utility were brought forward during the 2019 budget discussions, with the city manager supportive of four of them, explained Josh Mickleborough, director of engineering. However, during discussions council eliminated $40 million in capital spending across the board, which resulted in these enhancements being missed and excluded from the capital programs. What’s important to note is the three main projects are regulatory requirements and are not optional, he added. Therefore they had to be brought back for approval.
Council discussion
There is no final date for when these three enhancements need to be made, but city administration is looking at a followup inspection, said Mickleborough. These items can then be “escalated from there” once the followup happens. The provincial regulator wants to see compliance more than anything.
These items were lost in the shuffle during the budget discussions, Mickleborough told Swanson. City administration realized more than a month ago that the three enhancements were not approved after it attempted to move on them.
“It happens sometimes,” said city manager Jim Puffalt. “It was inadvertent. When we found the error, we wanted to get it back in front of council. … We obviously made a mistake. We’re not going to go out and buy something without approval from council.” The proposed methane project is not a requirement but simply an add-on, said Swanson. While it could generate revenue, he thought too much money would be spent attempting to capture this gas to convert it into electricity.
Swanson could live with the other three motions since they are regulatory requirements but thought council should let Regina and Saskatoon pursue this methane-capture initiative and study how that goes before leaping into this without knowing the cost.