More from the release:

“The production of renewable natural gas is a major milestone that will allow us to provide sustainable energy from local agricultural products that were previously discarded or shipped out of state,” said TGC’s president and CEO, Jeffrey Kissel.

Because Hawaii relies on imported petroleum for approximately 90 percent of its energy – more than twice as much as any other state – Hawaii’s state government launched the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative in 2008, calling for 70 percent clean energy by 2030. The Gas Company is working toward producing half of its gas from renewable and sustainable sources.

The new facility transforms fats and oils in a process that uses the heat from its existing gas production facilities, surplus hydrogen and steam to produce renewable natural gas and biofuels.

The renewable natural gas and biofuels that the RNG pilot plant produces will be incorporated into The Gas Company’s existing manufacturing and distribution operations. Renewable natural gas will displace gas produced from petroleum and will be distributed through The Gas Company’s 1,100-mile Oahu pipeline network. The cost for renewable natural gas should be the same as or less than gas produced from current sources, without relying on taxpayer subsidy.

You can read the full release here.

Here is a powerpoint from Chris Voell of the Environmental Protection Agency titled, “Renewable Biogas: Environmental Protection and Energy Independence.” You can download the full pdf here. It’s a large file so it may take a moment.

I’ve pulled out some interesting graphics and stats for a quick view.

Here’s a slide showing the projects across the country.

Some stats on the projects include:

• 450 electricity generation
• 135 direct use (medium Btu)
• 25 high Btu pipeline quality gas
  • AR, CA(2), GA(2), KS, LA, MI(2), NY, OH(3), PA(8), TN, TX(3), WI
  • Less than 5% of total projects
• GHG reductions from currently operating methane capture and use projects:
  • Direct Methane – 3.5 million metric tons CH4/year
  • Avoided CO2 – 9 million metric tons CO2e/year
  • Total Reductions – 80+ million metric tons CO2e/year
• Environmental equivalent to reducing CO2 emissions from:
  • More than 200,000,000 barrels of oil consumed, or
  • Nearly 16,000,000 passenger vehicles, or
  • Burning more than 450,000 railcars’ worth of coal.
• Energy equivalent to:
  • Powering more than 915,000 homes and heating more than 700,000 home

The presentation also includes some bullets on different case studies like the one from Fresh Kills Landfill, NY pictured above.

Fresh Kills Landfill, NY

• Began operation in the late 1970s
• LFG-to-high Btu pipeline quality
  • Selexol (chemical technology)
• Largest plant of its kind until 2007

Valley and Monroeville Landfills, PA

• Began operation in 2006
• LFG-to-high Btu pipeline quality (2 plants)
  • Membrane technology
• Delivery of gas to:
  • low-pressure local distribution pipeline
  • high-pressure gas transmission line

Scenic View Dairy, MI

• Began operation in 2007
• Dairy farm digester (3,500 head)
• Manure biogas-to-high Btu pipeline quality
  • Pressure swing absorption technology
• Small scale – 150 cfm of biogas

Hilarides Dairy, CA

• Began operation in 2009
• Dairy farm digester (9,000 head)
• Manure biogas-to-vehicle fuel
  • Pressure swing absorption technology
• Biomethane is compressed for use as vehicle fuel-displacing diesel fuel.

Renee Rippchen left a great comment on my last post. As I told her, I like hearing about how people are creating energy around this issue, so let me know what you’re doing.

Renewable natural gas is a biogas which has been upgraded to a quality similar to natural gas. One of the attractions of renewable natural gas is that by upgrading the quality to that of natural gas, it becomes possible to distribute the gas to customers via the existing gas grid, and burned within existing appliances.

We’ve had biogas on our radar for a while. A growing number of our members are interested in this energy option.

As are some really big energy players like Royal Dutch Shell.  This energy giant announced just last week their decision to discontinue investment in renewable technologies such as wind, solar and hydro power because they feel they are not economic. Instead Shell plans to invest more in biofuels – like renewable natural gas — which do not use food-based crops and are less harmful to the environment.

I’ve actually written on biogas before on this blog but here’s a little more information. Biogas originates from biogenic material and is a type of biofuel. One type of bio-gas is produced by fermentation of biodegradable materials such as biomass, manure or sewage, municipal waste, green waste and energy crops. The other principal type of biogas is wood gas which is created by gasification of wood or other biomass.

Biogas can be used as a low-cost fuel for any heating purpose, such as cooking. Biogas can also be used in modern waste management facilities where it can be used to run any type of heat engine, to generate either mechanical or electrical power. Biogas can be compressed, like natural gas, and used to power motor vehicles.

Leave a comment if you have questions on biogas and I’ll be happy to try and answer them. I’ll also write later about my thoughts on the briefing. We are excited about the opportunity to continue educating others about the options we have using renewable natural gas and our existing distribution network.

www.eia.doe.gov/ direct link.

This occurred even though the reserves base was being drawn down by more than 19 Tcf during the same period, as domestic natural gas was produced to heat homes and fuel businesses. So, does the United States have a relatively clean energy resource that is growing – not precipitously declining? Can it be sustained? Sources of methane may include:

• Traditional production
• Unconventional resource development
• Aboveground coal to methane
• Underground coal gasification
• Landfill gas
• Agricultural biogas
• Wastewater treatment biogas
• Methane hydrates primarily located on continental margins

Is methane ultimately a renewable resource?