California Authority Commissions Food Waste to Energy Project

The Encina Wastewater Authority (EWA) in Carlsbad, Calif., has commissioned a facility to recycle waste cooking oil and other food wastes and convert them to energy.

The EWA awarded a contract to J.R. Filanc Construction and forged a partnership with Irving, Texas-based Liquid Environmental Solutions to build an Alternative Fuel Receiving Facility, according to a news release. Construction of the facility will begin in the first quarter, and completion is expected six months later.

The project will deliver fats, oils and grease, liquefied food waste and other higher-strength digestible organic substrate to the EWA’s Water Pollution Control Facility. The waste will be anaerobically digested to yield additional biogas fuel to supplement current unused digestion capacity.

Liquid Environmental will deliver the fuel.

EWA anticipates the project will pay for itself during the first four years of operation. 

EWA currently produces nearly 80 percent of its 2.2-megawatt annual electricity demand from biogas that is created during the wastewater treatment process.