Rochedale Landfill Gas Project

Rochedale Landfill Gas Project is a landfill gas and electricity generation project located at the Rochedale engineered landfill site, approximately 18km south-east of the Brisbane CBD in Queensland. Registered in March 2013, the project operates over an unspecified area within the landfill facility. The surrounding region of South East Queensland is characterised by heavily urbanised residential, commercial, and industrial land uses. The local environment features a humid subtropical climate with high summer-dominant rainfall, while the natural soils generally consist of clays and podzolics, although the project itself sits atop a highly engineered composite clay-lined waste cell.

Landfill gas electricity generation projects involve the installation of gas collection systems, comprising a network of wells and vacuum pumps, to capture biogas produced by the anaerobic decomposition of organic waste. Under the standard requirements of the methodology, this captured gas, which contains roughly 50% methane and 50% carbon dioxide, is then combusted via a flare or a biogas engine to generate renewable electricity. This process prevents potent methane emissions from venting into the atmosphere while simultaneously displacing fossil-fuel-derived grid electricity.

This project is a major collaborative effort between the proponent, LMS Energy, and the Brisbane City Council. It was set up to capture gas from both legacy and non-legacy waste, and transitioned from a revoked Carbon Farming Initiative (CFI) method through to the 2021 Electricity Generation methodology. Through the installation of large-scale biogas engines, the project generates approximately 18,250 MWh of renewable energy per annum, which is enough to power over 3,300 local households around the clock. This is particularly impactful given that just one tonne of food waste can produce 1.9 tonnes of carbon emissions over its lifetime in a landfill. Notably, the project held a Carbon Abatement Contract (CAC783510) that was successfully completed in April 2022, securing substantial carbon abatement and contributing to a broader council initiative that prevents over 400,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent from escaping into the atmosphere annually across their landfill sites.