Ameresco selected by Utah agency for LFG plant

Framingham, Massachusetts-based Ameresco Inc. has been selected by the Wasatch Integrated Waste Management District (WIWMD) to design, build, own and operate a landfill gas (LFG) to renewable natural gas (RNG) plant at the Davis Landfill in Layton, Utah.

The project would be Ameresco’s second LFG beneficial use arrangement with the district and represents both organizations’ continued commitment to sustainable waste management solutions, Ameresco says.

The Davis RNG facility will be designed to capture naturally occurring LFG, primarily methane, resulting from the decomposition, transforming it into a renewable energy resource. The energy produced by the plant would result in an annual carbon dioxide emissions reduction of more than 475,000 tons annually.

As the owner of the facility, Ameresco will be responsible for the design, engineering, construction, commissioning and operation of the plan. Upon completion, Davis RNG is expected to replace the use of more than 8 million British thermal units (BTUs) annually of fossil fuels, including coal and natural gas.

“This is the type of win-win project that is exciting to be involved with,” says Nathan Rich, executive director of WIWMD. “Turning an environmental liability into a renewable energy source is a great way to meet the mission of the district. After commissioning the first LFG to energy project in Utah almost 20 years ago, we are looking forward to updating the project to a modern RNG plant to supply the current energy market.”

Ameresco, founded in 2000 and employing more than 1,500 people, is a renewable energy asset developer, owner and operator that has completed projects with federal, state and local governments, utilities, health care and educational institutions, housing authorities and commercial and industrial customers.

“Leveraging waste byproducts to displace the use of fossil fuel is a critical part of our nation’s clean and renewable energy transition," says Michael Bakas, executive vice president of Ameresco. "By transforming landfill gas into RNG, we’re taking a significant step toward creating a cleaner planet. This approach makes sense—why drill for natural gas that is sequestered deep in the earth when we can harness what’s already in our atmosphere?”

WIWMD is a quasi-governmental Utah Special Service District formed in 1984 to assume responsibility for waste and recycling in Davis and Morgan Counties in Utah. The district built a municipal solid waste incinerator in 1987 that closed in 2017 and a material recovery facility that opened in 2020.