Renewable energy company to build natural gas plant at Sand Springs landfill

A Sand Springs landfill will supply the methane for a natural gas processing plant that will soon be under construction.

American Environmental Landfill, part of Tulsa-based American Waste Control, already harvests gas created in the landfill to operate an electric generation facility.

Montauk Renewables operates the electric plant and will also operate the new gas plant.

AEL Vice President Todd Green said excess gas from the landfill would otherwise be burned, but now, "instead of destroying the ozone, what we're doing is cleaning that up and making sure it can be used by the community," he explained.

"The opportunity to put our renewable electricity and renewable natural gas into the local utility is the ultimate goal, to make the most beneficial use out of these facilities," said Montauk President Sean McClain

The company operates similar plants in other states. McClain said the process involves removing CO2 and other gases from the methane to meet the standard for natural gas utilities.

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BY THE NUMBERS

1. 5 million lbs: Daily waste handled at American Environmental Landfill
2. 100 years: Time to reach capacity at current intake rates
3. 290 Acres: Closed and current landfill space generating gas
4. $35 million: Announced investment planned for the facility
5. 2,000 Dekatherm: Expected gas generation capacity for new plant
6. 3.2 Megawatts: Current electric generation from gas collection
7. 18-24 months: Expected timeline for construction