Glenorchy Landfill Gas Abatement Facility

Glenorchy Landfill Gas Abatement Facility is a landfill gas electricity generation project located at the Jackson Street Landfill in Glenorchy, approximately 7km northwest of Hobart's central business district in Tasmania. It was registered in August 2013, and while the exact project area is undefined on the registry, the facility operates as a major municipal waste management and recycling centre serving the region's urban and peri-urban population.

Electricity generation from landfill gas projects involve capturing the methane gas that is naturally produced as organic waste decomposes in a landfill. The captured gas is then combusted in an internal combustion engine to generate electricity, preventing a potent greenhouse gas from entering the atmosphere while displacing fossil-fuel grid electricity.

The Glenorchy area experiences a cool-temperate climate with a moderate average annual rainfall of around 570mm. The landfill sits in a large topographical bowl near the foothills of Mt Wellington (kunanyi) on a mix of Jurassic dolerite and Permian rocks, with local soils featuring quaternary alluvial deposits and clays.

This project has evolved significantly over its lifetime, transitioning through several methodology variations from a 2012 legacy waste method to the current 2021 electricity generation determination. The project's participant structure has also shifted over time, starting with AGL Energy Services before transferring to Sustainable Energy Infrastructure Trust, and ultimately to the current proponent, LMS Energy Pty Ltd. The site is highly effective at emissions reduction; between 80% and 90% of the methane produced at the Jackson Street Landfill is successfully captured, generating enough electricity to power more than 1,700 local homes. Furthermore, an emissions reduction contract (CAC198503) established for the site with the Commonwealth in April 2015 was successfully completed in February 2023.