Esther Lauaki
2909biogas
By Esther Lauaki
Approval for a second biogas facility at Ravenhall landfill, which will eventually double the tip’s capacity to generate electricity, has been granted.
The Environment Protection Authority Victoria last week granted works approval for a second biogas facility at the existing Melbourne Regional Landfill.
The facility will double the site’s capacity to destroy captured landfill gas generated by the decomposition of wastes within the landfill, by burning it to generate about 68,000 MWh of electricity each year.
Landfill gas contains methane – a key greenhouse gas. The destruction of the landfill gas in the proposed facility would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by the equivalent of 220,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per annum at full capacity and generate enough electricity to power 15,000 homes, according to the landfill operators.
In addition to standard environmental requirements, the works approval specifies minimum exhaust stack heights and requires one of the eight new electricity generators to be fitted with a device that measures and records the destruction of the methane gas and the resulting emissions.
The embattled Melbourne Regional Landfill has faced fierce opposition from nearby residents, as well as Brimbank and Melton councils, who are fighting a state government proposal to dump toxic soil from the Westgate Tunnel project at the Ravenhall site.
The landfill’s operator, Cleanaway, sought planning approval last month from the Planning Minister to construct a soil management and reuse facility (SMRF) to store soil.
Brimbank mayor Georgina Papafotiou said the council strongly opposed the bid to dump the spoil in Ravenhall in the interests of nearby families and future investment and job opportunities for locals.
