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This wind turbine began producing power for Omaha Public Power District customers in December. It's one half of OPPD's green power program, which also includes a landfill-gas-to-energy facility.

OPPD to use landfill gas, wind in new green energy program

Starting in April, some Omaha Public Power District customers can talk trash when it comes to electricity. The utility is launching a two-part green energy program that will market landfill gas and wind energy.

"OPPD has always been proactive in protecting the environment--burning cleaner fuels, using modern technology to increase the efficiency of our operations, and conducting an excellent recycling program," said OPPD Vice President Dale Widoe. "To this list, OPPD now adds wind power and landfill gas in a Green Energy Program that will, once it's fully developed, produce more renewable energy than all other utilities in Nebraska combined."

The Douglas County Landfill will be the site for OPPD's trash-to-energy project. Methane gas produced by decomposing garbage will power four 800-kilowatt internal combustion engine/generator sets, producing 25.3 million kilowatthours of energy per year. That's enough electricity for more than 2,000 homes.

A system of wells will collect the gas and channel it to a container for filtering, compressing, and processing. It then goes to the generators. This process takes a waste product that was previously burned off and turns it into an energy-production resource.

There's also room for expansion. As the landfill gets bigger, the methane gas supply will increase. That will allow energy production to increase, too. Engineers predict the landfill plant's power production could increase to about 30 megawatts by 2035.

OPPD's partner in this project is Waste Management, Inc., of Houston, which owns the landfill. Waste Management has 33 methane plants across the nation. OPPD will own the plant, and Waste Management will operate it.

The other half of the Green Energy Program is a joint wind-energy venture with Valmont Industries, Inc., in Valley, Neb. The partnership will give OPPD an economical way to enter the wind energy market. Valmont gets an opportunity to demonstrate its new tower design and turbine-lift mechanism.

OPPD owns the wind turbine generator, while Valmont owns the tower, lift mechanism and the land where the turbine stands. The company's tower and lift prototype lets workers mount the turbine generator and rotors without a large crane, making construction less expensive. It's designed for utility-scale wind turbines.

The turbine began operating in December and will produce about 1.7 million kWh of electricity annually--enough to power 150 homes.

OPPD's Green Energy Program will be the largest in the state of Nebraska. Customers enrolled in the program must commit to participating for one year. Residential customers can participate at four levels, ranging from an additional cost of $4.50 to $30 per month. Commercial customers can participate at an additional cost of about 3 cents per kWh. As of the end of February, more than 1,000 customers had signed up.