State approves Lower Saucon power plant (landfill methane, PA)

http://www.mcall.com/news/local/all-b5-4landfilldec06,0,6668635.story

Your garbage will soon be put back to use at a landfill in Lower Saucon Township.

The state Department of Environmental Protection granted approval Tuesday for the construction of an energy plant that will convert methane gas into electricity at IESI Corp. landfill on Apple Butter Road.

DEP's air quality and waste management permits were the last governmental hurdle Bethlehem Renewable Energy LLC, a subsidiary of Virginia's Pepco Energy Services, needed to build the plant, which will produce enough power to light 4,500 homes while slightly reducing dependence on foreign oil.

''It's a good thing, and the state definitely feels it is,'' Lower Saucon Township Councilman Ron Horiszny said. ''The state is trying to make Pennsylvania a user of renewable energy, and now the township will be contributing to that.''

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