Landfill Methane Outreach Program
Project Profile
Tools
International's Springfield Assembly Landfill Gas Energy Project
- Location:
- Springfield, Ohio
- End User(s):
- International Truck and Engine Corporation
- Sector(s):
- Auto manufacturing
- Landfill(s):
- Tremont Landfill
- Landfill Size:
- 4.72 million tons waste-in-place
- Project Type:
- Boiler and Direct Thermal (process ovens)
- Project Size:
- 353 standard cubic feet per minute (scfm)
- Savings:
- $100,000 annually in avoided natural gas costs
- Environmental Benefits:
- Carbon sequestered annually by 8,900 acres of pine or fir forests, annual greenhouse gas emissions from 8,000 passenger vehicles, or carbon dioxide emissions from 97,100 barrels of oil consumed. Annual energy savings equate to heating 1,200 homes. Estimated emissions reductions of 0.0114 million metric tons of carbon equivalents.
- LMOP Partners Involved:
- Custer Services, Inc., International Truck and Engine Corporation
- Last Updated:
- 7/7/2010
When Ohio's Tremont Landfill closed in 1995, Springfield Gas Co. Inc. sprung to action. The independently-owned company, a specialist in landfill gas (LFG) extraction, recognized a great opportunity to use, rather than flare, the LFG. They approached the nearby International Truck and Engine assembly plant about using LFG as fuel.
No stranger to innovative environmentally beneficial projects, International liked the idea. Working with Springfield Gas, they replaced natural gas with LFG to fire process paint ovens, hot water boilers, and other plant units. By the project's end, LMOP recognized International as 2001 Energy Partner of Year.
The project's highlights include:
- First ever use of LFG in the radiant heat surface coatings.
- Educates the community about the environmental and economic benefits of LFG.
As the project's developer, Springfield Gas faced considerable challenges. The company had to obtain property access for pipeline construction and the rights to the gas—which was no easy task. Local citizens already had united to oppose a newly proposed landfill at the same location. They voiced concerns about reported groundwater contamination, an explosion in a nearby well pump house, and other public health issues.
To address these concerns, International and Springfield Gas launched an intense community outreach program to describe the energy partnership and the potential community benefits to area residents. They held public meetings, mailed fact sheets, and even visited citizens in each of the project's five proposed pipeline routes.
The companies' efforts paid off. After gaining support in the community and resolving permitting issues with the State, and more than five years after Springfield Gas and International initially sat down, the project started up in 2002.