Refuse Sector's Demand for RNG Increasing 

There is increased demand for renewable natural gas (RNG) from the refuse sector, especially in California, Clean Energy Fuels Corp. announced. With RNG, refuse trucks are fueled by the very solid waste they haul.

Clean Energy’s Redeem RNG vehicle fuel is derived from capturing biogenic methane that is naturally sourced by the decomposition of dairy and landfill waste. Redeem enables at least 70% reduction in carbon emissions when displacing diesel or gasoline, according to California Air Resources Board (CARB) estimates.

The City of Fresno, Calif., signed a two-year agreement with Clean Energy for renewable liquefied natural gas (RLNG) to power approximately 140 refuse trucks for an anticipated annual total of 1.6 million LNG gallons, the equivalent of just over one million gasoline gallons equivalent (GGEs). The City of Long Beach, Calif., has entered into a new two-year contract to fuel 77 vehicles with an expected 225,000 GGEs of Redeem, including its 35 LNG refuse trucks.

Private-sector refuse services are also signing up. NASA Services in Montebello, Calif., has opted to power its growing CNG refuse fleet of 50 vehicles with an approximate 400,000 GGEs of Redeem, while neighboring Arrow Services in La Puente, Calif., will fuel 30 trucks with an anticipated 250,000 GGEs. Burrtec in Riverside County, Calif., has inked a deal to fuel its transfer truck fleet with an anticipated 350,000 GGEs of Redeem from a public access station that Clean Energy operates.

Outside of California, the City of Spokane, Wash. has renewed a second option for operations and maintenance, along with an expected 250,000 GGEs of Redeem annually to power 40 waste trucks. DeKalb County in Georgia has expanded its CNG consumption by an expected 350,000 GGE increase in 2019 to power more than 45 new refuse trucks. Its total number of natural gas vehicles is now more than 200.

Groot Recycling and Waste, a Waste Connections Company in the greater Chicago area, has signed an agreement for approximately 890,000 GGEs of CNG to power 86 trucks.

In addition, Clean Energy continues to support Waste Pro USA’s $100 million commitment to transition its refuse fleet from diesel fuel to CNG with the growth of its Pompano Beach, Fla., fueling station. In Fort Pierce, Fla., Waste Pro has extended its repair and maintenance contract for two years, renewing its fuel commitment for an estimated 575,000 GGEs of CNG.