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INTRODUCTION AND PURPOSE <br /> <br />The purpose of this "white paper" is twofold: <br /> <br /> 1. To provide the reader with a brief overview of the technology <br /> and engineering feasibility of the extraction and commercial <br /> use of methane or "landfill gas" from existing sanitary <br /> 'landfills, and; <br /> <br /> 2. To provide the reader with the proposition of inclusion of <br /> major scale methane gas recovery from sanitary landfills into <br /> the decision making matrix for solid waste management/resource <br /> recovery for the future in the Twin Cities metropolitan area <br /> of Minnesota. <br /> <br />As a result of a major research effort, Anoka County is currently of the <br />opinion that landfill gas recovery holds a real and positive economic <br />and political potential for the development of a major alternative <br />energy source. It is the opinion of the County that this could be accomplished <br />with a minimal capital investment for the-seven county metropolitan <br />area. Further, it is the opinion of the County that the expenditure of <br />an estimated one quarter billion public dollars over the next ten years <br />for a "resource recovery system" for the development of a refuse derived <br />fuel (RDF) facility may, §iven the state of the art, be premature. As <br />an alternative, Anoka County offers the consideration of landfill gas <br />recovery on a major scale. <br /> <br />The reader should be clearly advised that the County analysis of landfill <br />gas recovery, as an alternative, is only "conceptual" at this time and <br />is not founded with hard engineering or economic data and fact. <br /> <br />Anoka County's objective is not to propose a definitive statement of <br />alternatives but rather to simply raise the issue for consideration.and <br />public discussion. The question which must be considered is: <br /> <br />Is the development of methane/landfill gas recovery feasible for <br />existing landfills in the Twin Cities metropolitan area and if so, <br />does this form of energy recovery pose a less costly and more <br />economically viable means of solid waste disposal for the future. <br /> <br />Anoka County welcomes and stands ready for discussion and response from <br />the reader. <br /> <br />-1- <br /> <br /> <br />