Clean Water Advocacy - Newsroom - NACWA in the News
King County Earns National Environmental Award for Generating Electricity from Methane Gas
A King County project that generates electricity using methane gas from
sewage treatment has earned the 2005 National Environmental Achievement Award
for excellence in research and technology from the National Association of Clean
Water Agencies, or NACWA.
King County's Wastewater Treatment Division received the award for its Fuel Cell
Demonstration Project at the South Treatment Plant in Renton. Using gas from
wastewater-solids digesters at the treatment plant, a fuel cell power plant
produces up to 1 megawatt of electricity, or enough to serve 800 households.
King County uses the electricity to run some treatment plant equipment, cutting
power costs about 15 percent. The molten-carbonate fuel cell, largest of its
kind in the world, began operating in April 2004.
If the demonstration project is successful, King County will continue to use the
fuel cell to produce energy for the treatment plant. The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency and Fuel Cell Energy Inc. of Danbury, Conn., are partners in
the project.
"To reduce energy costs and air emissions, King County is searching for
innovative ways to provide electricity for its wastewater treatment plants,"
said Wastewater Treatment Division Director Don Theiler.
"Our demonstration project moves the county into the 'green' power arena,"
Theiler said. "Power generated from the fuel cell will be green in at least
three ways: It uses a renewable fuel, wastewater digester gas. It produces power
efficiently. And it emits fewer pollutants than combustion engines."
NACWA, formerly the Association of Metropolitan Sewerage Agencies, gives annual
environmental achievement awards to people and member agencies that make
outstanding contributions to environmental protection and wastewater management.
NACWA presented the award May 2 at its national conference in Washington, D.C.
The research and technology award is given to agencies that develop
technological innovations in wastewater treatment or biosolids use and disposal.
The research project or technological innovation must have practical application
and relate directly to the collection, treatment, reuse or disposal of
wastewater or biosolids.
Fuels cell are electrochemical devices that convert chemical energy from fuels
containing hydrogen directly to electricity and heat. Combustion is not needed.
Similar to a battery, the fuel cell at the King County plant has hundreds of
individual cells. Cells are grouped to form a stack. Each fuel cell contains an
anode, cathode and electrolyte. Methane gas, a hydrogen-rich fuel, enters each
stack and reacts with oxygen to produce electricity.
More information about the project is available on the county Web site.
King County's Wastewater Treatment Division protects public health and water
quality by serving 17 cities, 17 local sewer agencies and more than 1.4 million
residents in King, Snohomish and Pierce counties. Formerly called Metro, the
regional public utility has been preventing water pollution for 40 years.