University of New Hampshire on Cutting Edge for Renewable Energy

[jpak]

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/347428/university_of_new_hampshire_on_cutting.html

University of New Hampshire President Mark Huddleston announced today that UNH and Waste Management of New Hampshire, Inc, have launched the EcoLine project. 12.7 miles of pipeline will be constructed to carry purified and enriched gas from Waste Management's Turnkey Recycling and Environmental Enterprise (TREE) facility in Rochester to the University's Durham campus.

UNH is the first university in the nation to take on such a vast landfill waste energy project. Construction is set to commence immediately on a landfill gas purification plant in Rochester.

The new landfill gas will replace much of the natural gas used in UNH's cogeneration plant, and will allow the university to get 80-85% of its energy from the renewable landfill gas while stabilizing its volatile energy costs, which rise nearly 20% on average annually. In addition, the university's greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced by approximately 67% over 2005 levels.

Waste Management is the nation's largest owner and operator of landfills, operating 281 in North America. The company recently announced that it is embarking on a substantial landfill gas-to-energy initiative culminating in the construction of an additional 60 renewable energy facilities. Altogether, Waste Management expects to generate over 700 megawatts of non-polluting, renewable energy that could power 700,000 homes while eliminating the need for over eight million barrels of oil.

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