SECCRA signs up for landfill gas-to-energy system

The Southeastern Chester County Refuse Authority (SECCRA) has selected Waga Energy to produce renewable natural gas (RNG) at the SECCRA Community Landfill in West Grove, Pennsylvania.

According to Waga, a France-based technology provider with an office in Pennsylvania, SECCRA is a municipal authority in charge of waste management in southern Chester County in eastern Pennsylvania.

Waga Energy says it has signed a 20-year agreement to produce RNG at the landfill, and under the agreement, Waga will finance, build, own and operate the RNG production facility using its Wagabox technology on site.

The installation would make it the second Wagabox unit in Chester County, with the other under construction at the Lanchester Landfill operated by the Chester County Solid Waste Authority.

Once commissioned in 2026, the SECCRA facility will inject 229,000 million British thermal units (MMBtu), or 67 gigawatt hours, of RNG per year into the local natural gas network, says Waga. The technology provider calls that enough energy to heat approximately 4,300 homes annually.

Waga also says the RNG produced will offset approximately 15,000 tons of CO₂ equivalent of emissions per year.

The SECCRA Community Landfill collects waste from a jurisdiction of 24 boroughs and townships in southern Chester County that consists of 105,000 people. The facility accepts close to 150,000 tons of waste annually, according to Waga.

“SECCRA has long been a pioneer in landfill gas-to-energy initiatives, earning recognition from the EPA with the Project of the Year Award in 2007 for turning landfill gas into electricity,” says Scott Mengle, general manager of SECCRA.

Comments Andrew Mazzeo, board chair of SECCRA, “This new agreement with Waga Energy represents the next chapter in our commitment to sustainability. By upgrading landfill gas to pipeline-quality standards for distribution, we are advancing our environmental stewardship while creating value for our community."

“We are extremely proud to install our innovative technology on SECCRA’s site to develop the third Wagabox unit in Pennsylvania and the 13th in the United States,” says Guénaël Prince, CEO of Waga Energy Inc., the French firm’s American business unit.

“We are inspired by SECCRA’s commitment to their community and their dedication to supporting this project and realizing the environmental benefits of it. We look forward to this 20-year partnership, which will create local energy and financial returns for the SECCRA Community Landfill and those it serves.”