Planning Pool

While some cities are staring to get savvy with organic waste management in municipal composting programs, rarely do you see an integrated approach to sewage or other…less desirable…animal byproducts that creates energy. Biogas is a time-tested technology for the anaerobic processing organic waste to create two very valuable byproducts: methane gas (energy) and nutrient rich sludge (fertilizer). The energy can be piped and used in stoves, heating systems, refrigerators – basically anything that runs from gas (including machines like generators that produce electricity).

A basic biogas system. Thanks to the Unesco Training Manual for this diagram!

Some clever communities, like Bern, Germany, are even compressing the gas and using it as fuel for buses. Although Vancouver’s Olympic Village does deserve credit for passively extracting heat from sewages for … Continue Reading

The NYC Sanitation Department donated one of these machines for use in the new park's signage. Photo by author.

For over 50 years Fresh Kills was the main landfill for New York City and  the largest dumpsite in the world.  In March of 2001 the site was closed due to pressure from the Environmental Protection Agency, only to be reopened temporarily in September of that year as the receiving site for the demolished World Trade Center buildings.   Now the land, once a symbol of waste and environmental disrespect, is being re-developed as the largest park in New York City—at 2,220 acres it will be almost three times the size of Central Park.  The site will be extensively landscaped with native vegetation and will provide natural ecological areas as … Continue Reading