10 replies to this topic

[Shortpoet-GTD]

"Mexico closed one of the world's largest landfills this month, but it's not just going to stop
accepting trash:
The Mexico City government is looking to build a biogas plant to turn the methane produced
by the waste in the dump into energy, as well as open a recycling plant to salvage some of the waste and find it a second life.
The Boston Globe reports that construction waste will be recycled into building material, and the BBC reports that a cement company has already agreed to buy 3,000 tons of dry waste a day to burn as fuel. There's also a composting plant for the organic waste.

The 927-acre landfill, Bordo Poniente, was collecting up to 12,000 tons of waste a day.
Since its construction in 1985, it had collected a total more than 76 million tons of garbage.

A press release about the closure, which is a project undertaken by Mexico City in collaboration
with the Clinton Climate Initiative Cities program and the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group:

Solid waste in landfills is the third largest source of anthropogenic methane emissions – 23 times more potent as a greenhouse gas agent than CO2. Capturing methane from the Bordo Poniente landfill could reduce GHG emissions from Mexico City by 25 million tons of CO2 equivalent over the next 25 years – more than one quarter of the city's total emissions. Globally, it represents one of the largest reductions of GHGs associated with solid waste management.
It is estimated that capturing methane from the Bordo Poniente Landfill could generate over 250 GWh or enough power for an estimated 35,000 homes in Mexico City during the first years of operation."

http://www.treehugge...ontent=My Yahoo

[Pushhyarag2000]

It makes an encouraging reading. Especially the news about production of vast energy by bio methanation of landfill waste. Its a double advantage in that it helps reduce the GHG emissions by over 25% of the total emissions while at the same time producing the much needed electircal energy. It will be interesting to find facts about capex and opex for such waste to energy project.

[Shortpoet-GTD]

Well, we certainly have more than enough landfills to tap into.

[mariaandrea]

It's a brilliant idea and I hope it turns into a template for other landfills around the world.

In the meantime, however, they closed the landfill earlier than expected and forgot to tell the workers who collect garbage what to do and where to take it. Mexico City produces 12,600 tons of garbage every day that is just sitting there. They said they've solved the problem but it's going to take some time to get rid of all the trash that's collected on the streets meanwhile.

http://www.npr.org/b...-in-mexico-city

[zararina]

It was good that they will use the landfill for electricity source than just not utilizing it at all. Bad thing that it could mean another place is needed to be use as a new land fill.
In here, one landfill was being used to supply some electricity living near that place. There was even a place there where there are outlets for electricity coming/produced from methane that people could go and use electricity for free.

[Alli]

Cool concept...sounds like they rushed the implementation a bit without thinking of the consequences, tho. I hope they get everything sorted out and get things organized so they can make this work. It will be an interesting proving ground for other cities to do similar things.

[Pushhyarag2000]

mariaandrea, on 29 December 2011 - 11:32 AM, said:

It's a brilliant idea and I hope it turns into a template for other landfills around the world.

In the meantime, however, they closed the landfill earlier than expected and forgot to tell the workers who collect garbage what to do and where to take it. Mexico City produces 12,600 tons of garbage every day that is just sitting there. They said they've solved the problem but it's going to take some time to get rid of all the trash that's collected on the streets meanwhile.

http://www.npr.org/b...-in-mexico-city

The biggest challenge for any metropolitan municipality is to be able to locate vast tracts of land required to create an alternate/additional landfill. Villagers around the big cities have grown in awareness and in organizing themselves and are not swayed easily by the lure of money in exchange for their land; they now either demand far more or are so mobilized and intense that they just do not allow their neighborhood to become dumping yard for 'someone else's daily waste'. Activists and non governmental agencies spearhead such movement and they are getting quite aggresive and vying for space for themsleves so, working for a cause like this gives them extensive visibility. In the meanwhile, the problem for cities gets mounts. I did not see that this is an issue mentioned in the article, though.

[JBMedia]

What a great idea! I hope this will work for Mexico and hopefully they can set a better example of things we can do with our own wastes. I personally love this idea, and the fact that a whole country is planning on doing this makes me even happier!

[joeldgreat]

The problem is, where to dump the next load of trash? Maybe a new landfill, burning, etc. No matter what it is, I'm sure it will bring another pollution in the environment. And the methane the old landfill create, I hope it will be harness to put into a better use.

[Shortpoet-GTD]

Another landfill bites the dust-this time in Rio.
Here.

[steph84]

This is such a great read. I'm happy to hear that Mexico is doing something with this landfill. That's so innovative. I wish the Bronx would use this type of technology instead of just building on top of landfills.