The Watauga County Board of Commissioners gave the go-ahead for a gas-to-electricity project at the former county landfill Tuesday night.
The commissioners received a proposal from county recycling coordinator Lisa Doty and Stan Steury of the Appalachian State University Energy Center to install equipment that would convert burned methane gas emitted by the landfill into electricity. The power would be used to operate sanitation department equipment, including trash compactors and balers, and the remainder of the electricity would be sold to Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation.
Doty estimated a payback period of three years or fewer for the new equipment, which includes generators and pipelines. A pipe system was installed several years ago to capture methane, which is produced as organic garbage decomposes. Currently, the captured methane is burned off via flares.
The commissioners approved spending up to $200,000 on the project, though Doty said some grants and federal stimulus funds could be available to assist the project.