Newcastle Landfill Gas Project

The Newcastle Landfill Gas Project is a waste-to-energy operation located at the Summerhill Waste Management Centre, approximately 12 kilometers west-northwest of the Newcastle CBD in New South Wales. Registered on March 22, 2013, the project operates within the boundaries of the region's primary waste facility, which serves the Newcastle Local Government Area. While the specific project area size is not detailed in the public registry, the operation covers the active and legacy cells of the Summerhill landfill, situated in a zone characterised by industrial waste management activities surrounded by the residential suburbs of Wallsend and Maryland, as well as remnant bushland corridors.

This project operates under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative, Electricity Generation from Landfill Gas) Methodology Determination 2021. This methodology incentivizes the installation and operation of gas collection systems that capture methane, a potent greenhouse gas generated by decomposing organic waste, and combust it to generate electricity. By converting methane into carbon dioxide and displacing fossil-fuel-based electricity from the grid, the project generates Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs). The system involves a network of vertical extraction wells and horizontal piping that funnels gas to onsite generation units.

The region experiences a humid subtropical climate with high rainfall, averaging approximately 1,100mm annually. The local geology is dominated by the Permian Newcastle Coal Measures, and the soils are typically sedimentary and clay-based (often classified within the Awaba Hills or Beresfield soil landscapes). These heavy clay soils are geologically significant for the site, as they provide the necessary impermeable material used for capping landfill cells to maximize gas capture efficiency and prevent leaching.

An interesting feature of the Summerhill facility is its evolution into a broader renewable energy precinct. In addition to the LMS Energy landfill gas generators, which have historically produced enough electricity to power over 2,700 households annually, the site also hosts a solar farm. The project has a long operational history, having successfully transitioned through multiple versions of the methodology (from the original 2012 determination to 2015, and finally to the current 2021 standard) and completed its initial carbon abatement contract in April 2022.