TAMWORTH hospital could soon be powered by the region’s rubbish, with an innovative energy proposal set to be put in front of council.
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At Tuesday’s ordinary meeting, Tamworth Regional Council (TRC) will consider a report investigating a means to reduce “fugitive gas” emissions from the Forest Road Waste Management Facility.
Council will consider a number of options aimed at curbing greenhouse gas emissions of the Forest Road landfill, while also reducing odour concerns currently experienced by neighbouring residents, through a range of potential methane capture and destruction systems.
The move comes after quarterly monitoring at the Forest Road site has returned numerous exeedances, during the last four years, against the council’s environmental protection licence requirements.
The rise in fumes has usually coincided during “summer months when ambient air temperature and rainfall values increase”.
The most recent exceedance in March this year led to “verbal advice” from the NSW Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) that further breaches could result in a “corrective action request”, which would require TRC undertake works to reduce the escape of gas from the landfill.
Council will consider a number of options for gas capturing, destruction utilisation from the Forest Road facility to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including the evaluation of treatment and exporting of landfill gas to the Tamworth hospital.
However, the hospital proposal would come a significant financial and management cost to council.
TRC would be responsible for the operation and maintenance of the network from the landfill site to Tamworth hospital.
Estimates for the establishment of the landfill to hospital connection are sitting at more than $1.2 million and would require council to operate and maintain high-voltage electrical assets.
Gas emissions from the decomposition of landfilled waste occur over an extended period of time depending on the waste type and will continue well beyond the point where filling at the Forest Road facility has ceased, according to the report to be considered by council.
TRC has been seeking a methane capture and destruction system for the Forest Road tip for a number of years, calling for expressions of interest for the design, installation and operation of a system in March 2012.