The Wyoming Recycling and Recovery Corporation is collaborating with the City of Rawlins and the Carbon County Economic Development Corporation on a proposal that would locate a Zero Waste Energy Plant at the Rawlins City Landfill.
This first-of-its-kind plant in Wyoming would turn Municipal Solid Waste into reusable energy. This Zero Waste energy plant would not only help minimize the amount of solid waste going into Wyoming’s landfills, but also help create viable resources that would benefit our communities.
How does this work?
The main function of the plant is a Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) which maximizes the quantity of recyclables processed, while producing materials that will generate the highest possible revenues in the market. MRFs can also function to process wastes into a feedstock for biological conversion or a fuel source for the production of energy. This in the form of Recaptured Natural Gas (RNG) and high-Grade Composting Material.
Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a bacterial fermentation process that operates without free oxygen and results in a biogas containing mostly methane and carbon dioxide. AD is also the principal decomposition process occurring in landfills. Biodegradation of organic material occurs in nature principally through the action of aerobic microorganisms.
Ultimately, complete oxidation of the carbonaceous organic materials results in the production of carbon dioxide(CO2) and water (H2O). Anaerobic microorganisms degrade the organic matter in the absence of oxygen with ultimate products being CO2 and methane (CH4) collectively called “biogas.” Anaerobic micro-organisms occur naturally in low-oxygen environments such as marshes, wetlands, and in the digestive tract of ruminant animals.
An MRF is an essential component of any city’s residential and commercial single-stream recycling program as more cities and municipalities across the United States have moved to single-stream recycling. In fact, a survey conducted by The Recycling Partnership in 2016 found that 82 percent of curbside recycling programs are now single-stream. There are two primary types of materials recovery facilities: clean and dirty.
Clean MRF vs. Dirty MRF
A clean materials recovery facility only processes residential or commercial single-stream recycling; that is, recycled materials that you place in your curbside recycling bin that is picked up weekly.
A dirty materials recovery facility processes residential or commercial trash in the hope of capturing recyclable materials that have incorrectly been thrown out as trash.
When combined with clean materials recovery facilities, the benefits of dirty MRFs are that they allow for greater overall recovery of recyclable materials. The downside is that they typically cost more to run as they require more manual labor.
Benefits to Carbon County
In 2013 –2014 Wyoming State Legislators appropriated $21,600,000.00 to help close or repurpose several landfill sites throughout the state, creating an added burden to existing landfills who accept waste from communities within those regions. This plant will help minimize landfill usage and convert methane into a fuel for heat and electricity.
Wyoming Recycling and Recovery Corporation believes we can turn a problem into a solution by taking those resources to create a sellable by-product and commodity to generate new revenue streams.
About WRRC
Wyoming Recycling and Recovery Corporation is a locally women/minority owned business and are attempting to help establish Rawlins and Wyoming as leaders in waste energy with the first of its kind facility in Wyoming.
For more information on this project, contact Patrick Gonzales, Project Manager at wyowrrc@hotmail.com or (307) 321-6841.
Wyoming Recycling and Recovery Corporation
PO Box 655
Rawlins, WY 82301
