Allentown's Waste To Energy Foolishness Part 3

On December 19, 2013 'Molovinsky On Allentown' brought up the subject of Allentown's waste to energy project. The post features a comment by Rich Fegley submitted to an earlier post..

In response I shall repost earlier articles I once published here, but had since removed.


Reposted From 12/04/2012In my previous post I spoke about Allentown's foolish waste to energy contract. This is a continuing discussion about that. Before I begin part two of this discussion please watch this video first.



What does Nepal's poop filled hole in a backward country have anything to do with Allentown's WTE? Who has the time or desire to stir a poop pit in one's backyard just to get one burner lit on a stove?

Plenty. It's called "biogas". It's proven technology. Allentown already has a huge poop pit. It's called the sewage treatment facility. I stated "proven technology" for a reason. It's a scientific fact the same can be done on a macro level such as Allentown's sewer plant. It's not a question of can it be done. It has already been successfully implemented for over 15 years.


Allentown: A Path Not ChosenAlas, if only Allentown had done it's due diligence before rubber stamping an unproven system.

I urge my readers to read the link from Olympia, Washington (May 3, 2010)"A new cogeneration system installed at the Budd Inlet Treatment... has substantially reduced the amount of energy needed for treatment processes and buildings at the plant by using treatment by-products as fuel. This renewable energy system, combined with an aeration blower retrofit currently underway at the Budd Inlet Treatment Plant, is expected to save LOTT more than $228,000 per year in utility costs.

Puget Sound Energy (PSE) provided a $1.7 million Energy Conservation Grant to install the cogeneration system. PSE is Washington State's oldest and largest energy utility, with a 6,000-square-mile service area stretching across 11 counties. They serve more than 1 million electric customers and nearly 750,000 natural gas customers.

The PSE grant represents 70 percent of an estimated total project cost of $2.4 million for the cogeneration system project... The combined projects are expected to result in an energy savings of more than 2.8 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year, enough to power more than 210 Thurston County homes. "The cogeneration system was the second phase for what they already had in place. According to HDR Inc. who provided permitting support, alternative funding support, design engineering and construction support services for the first phase of installation, "The project was installed in just under a year... Construction was completed in November 2009.".


Differences Between The Two* Olympia has a proven technology system.

* A utility paid 70% of the cost.

* Ours will try to process both solid & sewer wastes. However it's $43 million price tag, which $6 million of taxpayer's money will go towards, cost almost 20x's as much as Olympia's.

* Ours also comes with a $5,885,000 per year fee. Going up 2.21% each year thereafter with the hopes we'll get some of it back by selling electricity to the grid. That's if we ever get the thing to run in 2014 (the expected completion date).Another thing worth noting, Allentown is relying on Department of Energy grants & Loans from the Pa. Commonwealth Finance Agency.

There is another source of funding which, as far as I know, Allentown didn't take advantage of. the federal EPA. They are offering "Financial incentives, such as grants, tax incentives, low-interest loans, favorable partial load rates (e.g., standby rates), and tradable allowances." Along with.."Regulatory treatment that removes unintended barriers to CHP and biomass project development,such as standard interconnection requirements, net metering, and output-based regulations." In other words they not only offer grants and loans, they also will fast track the much dreaded permitting process. Several of them have already been given to PECO, MetEd, First Energy and others.

PPL has been on the EPA list since 2009 in Pennsylvania and 13 other states concerning alternative energy credit purchases. Why didn't Allentown look into PPL's already existing biogas renewable energy program?

It's becoming redundant for me to keep mentioning that biogas technology isn't some half baked experimental idea in which Allentown needed to fund a risky experiment.

One need look no further then the "American Biogas Council". On their website they state, plain as day "Over 1,500 wastewater treatment plants use anaerobic digesters and 250 of them use biogas to make electricity and/or heat.".

Even our contracted trash hauler "Waste Management" has been working with methane technology for over 15 years. Bet we didn't consult with them either, did we?

About all there is left to be said is...


"Stupid is as stupid does"
~Forrest Gump~