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I’ll tell you a little secret: new environmental laws are coming
Most Americans like to think of themselves as environmentally responsible, and that is fantastic. And of course state legislators are just as sensitive to the environment as their constituents are. One trend you can bet lawmakers already are keeping tabs on is the fact that food waste is now a totally unnecessary addition to landfills. Banning it from landfills would save space, generate renewable energy, AND reduce greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere.
It’s going to happen. Biogas Energy Partners is way ahead of this trend, experienced and well positioned to help secure the financial resources and regulatory approval needed to build cutting edgeanaerobic digestion systems. These systems will be absolutely required, throughout the country, to deal with food waste. BEP can point to an excellent case study, a source of hard data and information, that may be a good resource for local, state and federal policy-makers in the next few years. Our recent project, an anaerobic digestion facility in Exeter, Maine, can accept large amounts of food waste. This is a documented success story, not a science experiment. A lot more anaerobic digestion capacity will need to come online as lawmakers throughout the region begin to grasp what this technology can do.
Trust me, changes in environmental laws and solid waste policies are definitely on the way. A recent study in the UK suggests that country should ban food scraps from landfills by the end of 2020 and turn perishables into energy through anaerobic digestion. And, according to a recent article in the Boston Globe, state environmental officials are preparing to ban hospitals, universities, hotels, large restaurants, and other big businesses and institutions in Massachusetts from discarding food waste in the trash beginning in 2014, a measure that in coming years they hope to extend to homes as well.
This is all great news for the environment, and for our renewable energy portfolio. Of course, government policies need to catch up first, and it will take education for the general public to understand and embrace the substantial benefits. But it’s going to happen, and my prediction is that solid waste policies will have concluded the shift well before this decade is finished.
Adam Wintle is BEP’s managing partner, navigating the complex financial, regulatory and operational challenges associated with successful anaerobic digestion projects.
http://biogasenergypartners.
The news media turned out in force recently at a press conference in Exeter, Maine. Anaerobic digestion and the disposal of food waste will be a public policy issue very soon, throughout New England.
