Services Performed
Asset Development Consulting
Audit
Compliance Management
EcoUniversity
Regulatory Engagement
Located in the heart of America’s Midwest, Dane County (Madison, Wisconsin) has always led by example when it comes to climate change action and sustainable development. Its journey toward sustainability reached a new milestone in 2016. The County launched an ambitious landfill gas upgrading plan to produce pipeline-quality renewable natural gas (RNG) for injection into a nearby natural gas utility. The concept of a shared RNG injection point or an RNG offloading station was the first of its kind in the nation. This revolutionary concept reduced the barriers for biogas producers to gain access to the pipeline, renewable energy markets, and the USEPA- and state-issued renewable fuel credits.
The County hired EcoEngineers to guide them through the intricacies (and potential pitfalls) of taking their landfill gas to pipeline-quality, building an offloading station, and monetizing the carbon reduction when the RNG is substituted for diesel fuel. EcoEngineers is still retained by Dane County in a variety of capacities.
Key performance
Led a multi-day training session for county officials – educating them on current clean fuels policy and reviewing pro formas
Assisted county staff through the technology selection process by reviewing technology specifications and interviewing bidders
Guided the offtake selection process by reviewing term sheets and interviewing bidders
Trained staff on best practices to fulfill compliance expectations under the U.S. Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS)
Provided a quality assurance program to verify the carbon reduction claim
Key results
Engaged with the USEPA to obtain a rule interpretation that allowed the offloading station to operate
Registered the project in record time under the RFS, zeroing out any projected impact on year-1 revenues from regulatory delays
