Rochedale Landfill Gas Project

Rochedale Landfill Gas Project is a landfill gas (electricity generation) project located in Rochedale, a suburb approximately 15 kilometres south-east of the Brisbane CBD in Queensland. Registered in March 2013, the project operates over an unspecified area within the Brisbane City Council's Rochedale landfill site. The surrounding region of Rochedale was historically known for its agricultural land use, particularly poultry farming, piggeries, and cropping, but has increasingly transitioned into residential and commercial development over recent decades.

Electricity generation from landfill gas projects involve capturing the biogas generated from decomposing organic landfill waste, which comprises roughly 50% methane and 50% carbon dioxide, and combusting it to generate renewable electricity. Standard requirements under the methodology mandate that the volume of methane sent to a combustion device or biogas upgrading system must be strictly monitored and calculated using the energy content of the landfill gas to ensure that emissions reductions are accurate and verifiable.

Situated in the sub-tropical climate of South East Queensland, the Rochedale area typically experiences a high-rainfall climate with summer-dominant precipitation and high humidity. The local environment is characterised by rich, red soils that are highly fertile and were historically valued for local crop production prior to the area's widespread urbanisation.

This project represents a major collaboration between the proponent, LMS Energy Pty Ltd, the Brisbane City Council, and engineering firms like Clarke Energy. It transitioned from a revoked Carbon Farming Initiative (CFI) method to continue capturing and combusting gas from both legacy and non-legacy waste. The site features a 1.1MW Jenbacher biogas engine, which integrates into an existing fleet of six engines to form a 7MW total installation, capable of generating enough renewable electricity to power more than 3,300 Brisbane households. Furthermore, the project was contracted with the Commonwealth in April 2015, and its associated Carbon Abatement Contract (CAC783510) was successfully completed in April 2022.