(and other renewables)
Thursday, May 22
6:30 – 8:30 pm
6:30: Enjoy light refreshments and network (please bring your own mug)
7:00: Program begins
Thurston County Courthouse, Building 1, Room 280
2000 Lakeridge Dr. SW, Olympia
Join us on May 22 for an educational event about an exciting form of
renewable energy. Solar, wind, and hydro are great ways to generate
electricity – depending on the weather.
One resource that doesn’t get as much attention is how we can generate
energy from organic waste. Luckily a panel of regional leaders will join us
to talk about anaerobic digester technology, a pilot project planned for The
Evergreen State College, and connecting renewable energy projects to our
regional grid.
This small anaerobic digester from Impact Bionergy handles 1000 lbs per day
of foodwaste, making 11 kW per hour of electricity.
This larger Impact Bionergy system handles 6000 lbs per day of foodwaste,
making 60 kW per hour of electricity.
Tom MacLean from Puget Sound Energy will provide examples of renewable
energy projects, and outline the process of working with PSE toward
distributed generation interconnection, from initial application to
operation. As he says, “Customers have the right to net metering; hence PSE
will make interconnection a good customer experience at the lowest cost and
use minimal time.”
Scott Morgan is in the preliminary phase of developing a project at The
Evergreen State College that will handle local food wastes in a manner that
he believes is the highest and best use:
1. Keep organic waste out of the landfill
2. Extract energy for electricity and heat
3. Capture the elemental nutrients as compost for local use
“This project is an example of what can be done at a variety of scales, in a
distributed manner, to convert ‘waste disposal’ into true ‘resource
recovery’.” Scott Morgan
Jan Allen from Impact Bieonergy is helping Scott develop TESC’s pilot
project, and will talk about how anaerobic digester technology converts
organic waste into distributed renewable energy. His company’s technology
provides “co-located, onsite renewable energy production and organic waste
recycling.” This reduces energy and disposal costs, yielding the greatest
economic and environmental impact.
Tom MacLean
Tom serves as the Manager of Customer Renewable Energy Programs, within the
Products and Services division at Puget Sound Energy. Tom manages a team of
renewable energy professionals working on alternatives for customers through
partnerships with PSE. Tom’s work includes assisting customer-generators
with their plans, and providing input to the policy teams regarding various
proposals. Previously Tom served in the Integrated Resource Planning group
with responsibilities for long-term modeling, development of the biennial
Integrated Resource Plan, and public policy analysis. Tom has represented
the company on resource planning issues at the Washington Utilities and
Transportation Commission, the Northwest Power and Conservation Council, the
National Association of Regulatory Commissions, and with policy makers in
Washington, D.C. and Olympia.
Scott Morgan
As the Director of Sustainability for The Evergreen State College, Scott
coordinates and guides on-campus sustainability efforts as well as
institutional collaborations with community-based groups. Scott worked in
agriculture and private industry, founded and managed a small non-profit,
and spent the past few years immersed in the public sector. This diverse set
of perspectives informs his recognition that long-term sustainability will
require a dynamic harmony between environmental, social, and economic
health.
Jan Allen
Jan leads Impact Bioenergy as President. He has been involved in design,
construction, and operation of organics facilities since 1989, at Cedar
Grove Composting, CH2M HILL, Concept Kinetics, and Harvest Power. Those
facilities have diverted over 10 million tons and the anaerobic systems
produce 10 MW per hour of renewable energy. He is the registered inventor of
five US Patents for composting, digestion, and biofiltration. Jan is a
professional civil engineer and certified Compost Facility Operator. He
graduated from Purdue University, School of Civil Engineering.
Questions or more info, contact barb@scavezze.com