SALISBURY, Md. (AP) - Wicomico County officials are considering a plant at the county landfill to convert solid waste into energy-producing gas.
The Daily Times reports that supporters say the plant would create a new local energy source and help dispose of tons of chicken manure. County Public Works Director Lee Beauchamp and other officials met with regulators in Annapolis on Wednesday to discuss permitting hurdles for the $75 million project.
The plant could handle 600 tons a day. The process leaves behind carbon monoxide and hydrogen and a charred remnant of the trash, totaling about 5 percent of its original volume.
Beauchamp says the overall operational savings could be $3.2 million a year. He suggests that with approvals the plant could be operational by 2017.
