Wednesday 14th June 2006

Beemer paintshop goes green

Local landfill supplies energy to paint your car

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This BMW is green

BMW is now using recycled methane gas generated by the Palmetto Landfill near Spartanburg in the US to provide energy to its paint shop, reducing area emissions of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, by 17,000 tons and recovering enough energy to heat 10,000 homes a year.

BMW reckons its manufacturing division gained international recognition four years ago, when it announced in June 2002 that a 9.5-mile pipeline was constructed from the landfill to its facility to provide some of the plant's energy needs. In May, the plant began using recycled methane gas in its paint shop, the part of the facility that consumes about 50 percent of the plant's total energy. The innovative recycling program will also save the company a seven figure sum annually in energy costs.

The efficient cogeneration of electricity and hot water has been a part of BMW's overall plan since construction of this plant began in 1993. The move to use recycled landfill gas to power the paint shop began in 2004. The manufacturing plant in Spartanburg is part of BMW's global production network, which has reduced CO2 emissions by 30 percent in the last ten years.

BMW is working with long-standing partner Durr Systems to modify and upgrade equipment so landfill gas can be used to fuel the paint shop. Durr Systems specialises in developing and implementing energy performance projects in industrial facilities.

Durr Systems is an industrial service and product provider that works on energy performance improvements projects in industrial facilities. Ameresco designed, built and owns the pipeline, gas processing and gas compression facilities as well as manages the overall operations of the project. Waste Management, which owns and operates the Palmetto Landfill, currently supplies landfill gas to 69 gas-to-energy projects in 21 US states.

[Mafioso]

Very good! Let's see who follows suit then...