How is natural gas utilized in Central Oregon?
Central Electric Cooperative (CEC) in Bend, Oregon, is part owner of a clean, non-polluting electricity generating plant in the Willamette Valley that creates power by burning methane gas from a nearby landfill. If this gas wasn’t used to produce electricity, it would have to be burned in the open air to meet federal EPA regulations. The same anaerobic digestion process that produces biogas from animal manure and wastewater occurs naturally underground in landfills. Most landfill gas results from the decomposition of cellulose contained in municipal and industrial solid waste. Unlike animal manure digesters, which control the anaerobic digestion process, the digestion occurring in landfills is an uncontrolled process of biomass decay. This environmentally friendly source of energy, Green Power, is available to CEC members. You can buy as little or as much as you want, in 100 kilowatt-hour blocks. The price will be 1.8 cents per kilowatt-hour more than the regular rate. So, if you sign
