Drilling for methane in the county landfill

High atop the mountain of garbage that is the Berkeley County landfill, an emerging network of pipes could turn trash into treasure.

The 6-inch-wide plastic pipes started going down through the muck last week. They were the first visible evidence of an ambitious project unveiled in January.

Over the next week or so, 50 pipes will be sunk 50 to 150 feet into the garbage pile, avoiding the plastic liner at the bottom. They will pump up methane, part of the miasma that gives the place its distinctive smell.

The county can make money off methane by burning it or by selling it for electricity, according to Water & Sanitation Executive Director Colin Martin.

Burning methane keeps a prime suspect in global warming out of the air.

Neutralizing the methane also racks up carbon credits, which can be sold to brokers who service industries looking for ways to offset their own carbon emissions.

The process should also make the landfill smell better, Martin said.

Methane can also power generators that produce electricity.

The county has been talking with several potential customers, Martin said.

That includes Santee Cooper, although no deal has been made, and it's possible a smaller company could bring in generators instead. Santee Cooper gets electricity from four landfills around the state — in Anderson, Horry, Lee and Richland counties — and is building a fifth project in Georgetown, Santee Cooper Communications Director Mollie Gore said.

The county will dig holes and put down pipes and pumps with $2.8 million from the water and sewer department's general fund, Martin said.

The money is also paying for a study of whether to purify the methane into natural gas, possibly for natural-gas vehicles.

Bigger plans for the landfill include an anaerobic digester to turn waste into natural gas and a biomass power plant to make electricity from sewer sludge and wood waste, and a system to convert restaurant grease into pellets that can be burned for electricity.

More money would be needed for the bigger projects. The county has asked U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, a Democrat whose district includes the county, to include almost $129 million over three years for the landfill project in his 2010 appropriations bill.

The county also plans to apply for federal stimulus money available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

"I'm not saying there is not an opportunity for derailment," Martin said. "Funding is always an issue. Partnerships are always an issue. But we're making progress."