Final Environmental Assessment for the Rhode Island LFG Genco, LLC Combined Cycle Electricity Generation Plant Fueled by Landfill Gas, Johnston, Rhode Island (DOE/EA-1742)

The Department of Energy (DOE) prepared this Environmental Assessment (EA) to evaluate the potential environmental consequences of providing an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act; Public Law 111-5, 123 Stat.115) financial assistance grant to Rhode Island LFG Genco, LLC (RI-LFGG) to facilitate expansion of an existing landfill gas collection system and construction and operation of a combined cycle power generation plant at the Central Landfill in Johnston, Rhode Island. DOE’s Proposed Action would provide $15 million in financial assistance in a cost-sharing arrangement with the project proponent, RI-LFGG. The total cost of the project is estimated to be about $100 million. The primary objective of RI-LFGG’s proposed project is to maximize the productive use of waste landfill gas generated at the Central Landfill in Johnston, Rhode Island. RI-LFGG would expand the existing gas collection system at the landfill and construct a landfill gas recovery and treatment plant and a 42-megawatt landfill gas-to-electric generating power plant. The power generated from the proposed project would be distributed to the local power grid via a new 2,000-foot electric transmission line to connect to the existing grid. This EA evaluates 14 resource areas and identifies no significant adverse environmental impacts for the proposed project. Beneficial impacts to the nation’s energy efficiency and local economy could be recognized. The proposed project would generate about 366,000 megawatt-hours per year of electricity. By destroying the methane in the landfill gas, the proposed project would generate carbon dioxide equivalent reductions of greater than 1.4 million tons annually and the avoidance of over 165,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year from not using fossil fuels for generating a similar amount of electricity.