Alyssa Danigelis, Environmental Leader
Summary
Businesses in Orlando, Florida, are saving dumpster fees by sending their food waste to a biofuel facility serving Walt Disney World. The city’s green bin program is available to any local business, WOFL Fox 35 reports.
Kaley Winters, manager of Juice Bar in Orlando, told the news outlet’s Matthew Trezza that previously they paid to send their organic waste to the city dump. Now the business pays a lower fee to put compost in a green bin, which goes to an anaerobic digestion facility in Central Florida.
“We thought it was going to going out to be composted and help gardens,” Winters told the outlet. She added that she was excited to find out that it’s helping EPCOT and creating energy.
The $30 million biofuel facility was built by Waltham, Massachusetts-based Harvest Power, Marc Gunther reported for the Guardian in 2014. The facility was designed to process about 120,000 tons of organic material per year and produce 5.4 MW of combined heat and electricity, Harvest Power’s chief executive told Gunther.
American Biogas Council noted last month that the anaerobic digester currently processes 130,000 tons of biosolids, fats, oils, grease, and food waste annually. Walt Disney Resort is among the local partners along with Reedy Creek Improvement District, Reedy Creek Environmental Services, and local participating hotels, restaurants, food processors and haulers, the council says.
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