Whylandra Waste and Recycling Centre Landfill Gas Project

Whylandra Waste and Recycling Centre Landfill Gas Project is a landfill gas abatement project located at the Whylandra Waste and Recycling Centre on Cooba Road, approximately 15km west of Dubbo in New South Wales. It was registered in April 2014 and covers the waste footprint of the regional council's landfill site.

Landfill gas projects involve capturing greenhouse gases, predominantly methane, produced by decomposing organic waste within a landfill. The captured gas is then combusted through flares or electricity generators to convert the methane into less potent carbon dioxide. Under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative - Landfill Gas) Methodology Determination 2015, standard requirements dictate that proponents must maintain compliant gas collection systems and accurately measure the volume of methane sent to the combustion device to calculate their net emissions reductions.

The Dubbo area is situated in the Orana region of New South Wales, which features a semi-arid to temperate climate with moderate, variable rainfall. The surrounding environment is dominated by chromosol and vertosol (clay) soils. Because of these conditions, the general land use in the region relies heavily on agriculture, including sheep and cattle grazing, as well as the cropping of wheat, cotton, and sorghum.

This transitioning project originally operated under a revoked 2012 Carbon Farming Initiative methodology before transitioning to the 2015 method to continue capturing and combusting gas from both legacy and non-legacy waste. The project previously secured a Carbon Abatement Contract (CAC333101) from the Australian Government in April 2015, which was successfully completed in September 2021. In July 2023, the project proponent was updated from LGI Limited to LMS Energy Pty Ltd. Beyond carbon abatement, the Whylandra Waste and Recycling Centre is a major hub for circular economy initiatives; the site has recently hosted a first-of-its-kind second-hand solar panel reuse project and a comprehensive textile recycling scheme to further reduce regional landfill waste.