The Stamford WPCA Biosolids Energy Demonstration Project

Sustainable management of biosolids remains a challenge for wastewater utilities and agencies across North America. Traditional beneficial use practices such as agricultural land application are becoming increasingly more difficult because of rising costs, regulatory uncertainty and public opposition. With growing awareness of climate change issues and with the growing need to reduce the dependence on foreign oil, utilizing renewable fuels for energy is increasing in importance. Because of this, the Stamford Water Pollution Control Authority (SWPCA) has proposed a biomass to energy demonstration project. This project will prove that the wastewater industry's most difficult by product, sludge, can be converted to a viable and productive fuel source.The SWPCA has been and continues to be a leader in environmental stewardship, with such notable initiatives as the development of the Stamford Baffle in the 1980's and research in biological nitrogen removal in the 1990's. In keeping with this record, the SPWCA is demonstrating an innovative project with the assistance of a grant from the Department of Energy. The objective is to show that dried and pelletized wastewater residuals can be used as a renewable energy source to generate electrical power. The project will determine the technology needed to convert pellets of dried wastewater residual into a renewable fuel which can in turn be used to generate power and prepare the design for a full scale demonstration facility.