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The City of Portland, Oregon

Nick Fish (In Memoriam)

City of Portland Commissioner

phone: 503-823-3589

Email: nick@portlandoregon.gov

1221 S.W. 4th, Room 240, Portland, OR 97204

A Big Win for the Environment and Our Ratepayers

April 20, 2017

Every year, BES processes 28 billion gallons of wastewater. A natural byproduct of sewage treatment is methane, a potent greenhouse gas. For years, the City has been capturing a portion of this methane gas to produce electricity. The rest gets burned off in a process called “flaring” where it turns into carbon dioxide (another potent greenhouse gas) and gets released into the atmosphere.

At the Bureau of Environmental Services, we know that what’s good for the environment is also good for our ratepayers. That’s why, in celebration of Earth Day, we are launching an innovative venture to turn waste into clean energy while earning money for Portlanders.

Or, to put it more crudely—turning poop into power!

And it’s a triple-win.

Starting this summer, BES will capture 100 percent of the methane from Portlanders’ waste, dramatically reducing our carbon footprint (win #1).

We will then convert the methane into renewable natural gas to reduce our reliance on dirty diesel (win #2).

And through our partnership with local utility NW Natural, we’ll generate $3 million each year for our ratepayers (win #3).

To learn more about this exciting project, read BES’s Press Release and Nick’s op-ed with BES Director Mike Jordan in the Portland Tribune.

My View: Turn Waste into Clean Energy

Nick Fish and Mike Jordan in the Portland Tribune

 

Earth Day 2017: City moves to 100% methane recovery, creating triple-win for public: revenue, climate gains and cleaner air

BES News

 

City Approves Plan to Turn Sewage Into Car Fuel

Keely Chalmers in KGW

 

Portland 'Going to be Turning Poop Into Power'

Tim Becker in KOIN 6 News

 

Portland plans to turn 'poop into power'

Jessica Floum in The Oregonian

 

Council to consider Portland's largest climate change project Wednesday

Jim Redden in the Portland Tribune

 

Portland Votes 'Yes' On Plan To Turn Poop Into Vehicle Fuel

Amelia Templeton in OPB

 

The Natural Gas You Pass is Being Turned Into Natural Gas You Can Use

Lulu Chang in Digital Trends

  

Every time you poop in Portland, you're helping the environment

Mike Moffitt in SFGATE