Tontitown Landfill

Tontitown Landfill

The Tontitown Landfill is a huge garbage dump outside of Springdale, Ark. It has come under media attention because of a Business Week article that criticizes the effectiveness of carbon offsets purchased from the dump. TerraPass has... [more]

The Tontitown Landfill is a huge garbage dump outside of Springdale, Ark. It has come under media attention because of a Business Week article that criticizes the effectiveness of carbon offsets purchased from the dump. TerraPass has purchased thousands of tons of gas reductions on behalf of environmentally minded drivers. The Business Week article questions whether these offsets are in fact helping the environment.

Track the story here and share your opinion about Tontitown and other carbon offset projects.

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Landfill methane towers scorch perched hawks

From:   www.ap.org
A towering landfill smokestack offers an irresistible perch for raptors to watch for rodents scavenging in the treeless landscape below. But when flames fed by landfill gas rush upward, the birds are being scorched or burned alive. At the urging of wildlife rehabilitators, the solid-waste industry is starting to investigate where birds may be at risk and ways to protect them — such as welding deterrent spikes atop smokestacks and providing alternative perches. It's unclear how widespread the problem is, but suffering or dead birds have been reported in recent years in New York, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Illinois. "I heard about the horrific ... Read Full Story

Treehugger interviews Wes Muir of Tontitown

Written by The_Zimbio_Team on
TH:- The gas collection and control system at the Tontitown, Arkansas landfill uses approximately 75 gas extraction wells (as pictured) to collect landfill gases generated by decomposing waste. Thermal destruction of collected gases occurs at a central, high-temperature flare. Why was this necessary? WM: -In 2001, we began addressing issues related to methane gas seeping into and impacting the groundwater in areas around the Tontitown landfill. We voluntarily installed this system because it was the most effective option, one that went beyond standard Federal and State regulatory requirements. Further, we worked with the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality to ensure the landfill gas system ... Read Full Story

TestAmerica Speaks on Data Quality in Vapor Intrusion (VI) Investigations and Landfill Gas Evaluation

Written by nicheannihilation on
William Elcoate, TestAmerica's Air Product Manager, will discuss the challenges of collecting relevant and reliable data in Vapor Intrusion (VI) investigations, and the increasing regulatory attention given to landfill gas evaluation. Both presentations will be provided at the 46th Annual Florida Section Air & Waste Management Association's (A&WMA) Conference & Exhibition in Captiva Island, FL on October 4-6, 2009. The EPA published OSWER Draft Guidance for Evaluating the Vapor Intrusion to Indoor Air Pathway from Groundwater and Soils (Subsurface Vapor Intrusion Guidance) that introduced a systematic modeling and empirical data collection process for evaluating indoor inhalation risks from sub-surface vapor. Over time, it has ... Read Full Story

Escambia County approves Gulf Power's renewable energy project

Written by nicheannihilation on
More renewable energy will be produced in Northwest Florida soon. Gulf Power's agreement to build a facility to convert landfill gas to energy at the Perdido Landfill has been approved by the Escambia County Commission. Initially, landfill gas generators will produce 3,200 kilowatts of renewable energy — enough to power about 1,500 homes. The energy capacity can be increased as the landfill produces more methane in the future. 'This partnership with Escambia County will produce tremendous benefits for our community,' said Sandy Sims, manager of Gulf Power Public Affairs. 'The process will eliminate a source of greenhouse gas by capturing and using the methane ... Read Full Story

Landfill to build power plant run on methane gas

Written by mus302 on
Waste Management Inc. plans to build Arkansas' second "gas-to-energy plant" near its Tontitown landfill. The plant will convert methane gas to generate about 5 megawatts of electricity, which could power 5,000 homes, said George Wheatley, a spokesman for the Houston based company. Methane gas is created naturally as waste decays in landfills. "It's green electricity," Wheatley said. "It moves your landfill from being just a landfill to being a component of renewable energy." The Tontitown landfill should have an ample supply of methane to provide 5 megawatts of electricity for about 30 years, Wheatley said. Source : NWAnews Related Posts: Senator Nelson Introduces Biogas ... Read Full Story

Landfill to build power plant run on methane gas

Written by svtfan on
Waste Management Inc. plans to build Arkansas’ second “gasto-energy plant” near its Tontitown landfill. The plant will convert methane gas to generate about 5 megawatts of electricity, which could power 5,000 homes, said George Wheatley, a spokesman for the Houston based company. Methane gas is created naturally as waste decays in landfills. “It’s green electricity,” Wheatley said. “It moves your landfill from being just a landfill to being a component of renewable energy.” The Tontitown landfill should have an ample supply of methane to provide 5 megawatts of electricity for about 30 years, Wheatley said. Northwest Arkansas News Source Read Full Story

Terrapass posts highlights of Tontitown regulatory test findings

Written by The_Zimbio_Team on
Waste Management began work on the methane flaring system prior to the groundwater contamination system. Waste Management considered five alternative means of addressing the groundwater issue. The Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) wrote a letter strongly urging WM to complete the methane flaring system in order to address the groundwater problem. The minimal system required to address the groundwater contanimation problem would have consisted of 26 “out-of-refuse” methane wells. WM has spent approximately $500,000 on additional “in-refuse” wells over the lifetime of the project. The in-refuse wells account for an estimated 99% of the methane capture at the landfill. Check out the Terrablog ... Read Full Story

TerraPass shows its commitment

Written by The_Zimbio_Team on
A recent BusinessWeek article casts some doubt on the benefits of a carbon offset project at the Tontitown dump.  The project is funded by TerraPass, a leader in consumer-purchased carbon offsets. TerraPass is responding to the article in a very transparent and genuine manner.  They're conducting a full review of the Tontitown landfill gas flaring project that was questioned in the article and they've stopped all purchases until their review is complete.  Better yet, they plan to publish their review and process on their blog . This review has the potential to shed light on the benefits of carbon offsets and the efficacy of ... Read Full Story

Panel report on Tontitown Landfill

Written by Tony on
The panel report is finally out for the Tontitown landfill project .  Terrapass has a nice summary of the panel findings.  Basically the panel gave qualified approval to the Tontitown project for meeting  “a minimum threshold of additionality.” Terrapass dug into this project in full detail and found that the project met several  additionality tests as well. The panel also makes a few recommendations for further criteria Terrapass (and for that matter, other organizations) can apply to future projects in order to increase effectiveness The panel consisted of William Schlesinger of Duke University, Dan Kammen of Berkeley, and Mike Gillenwater of Princeton. The complete ... Read Full Story

Welcome to our blog about the Tontitown Landfill and additionality of carbon offsets

Written by The_Zimbio_Team on
This is our group blog, which is unique because any Zimbio member can post an entry to it. Some members blog about recent news and trends related to the portal topic, others recount relevant personal stories. You can also comment on and rate existing blog entries, to voice your opinion and to help the community identify which members and entries on the portal are must-reads. Got an interesting idea or story to share with other members of this portal? Well, then put on your journalist's cap and add your own blog entry ! Read Full Story
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Tontitown Landfill Overview
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Verification Report - PDF
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tontitown Landfill
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Tontitown Landfill
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THE ENVIRONMENT
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