The Benefits and Implications of Waste-derived Power and Fuel

The United States generates over 250 million tons of municipal solid waste and 9 trillion gallons of wastewater annually, yet recovers less than 18 percent of the potential 10.5 million metric tons of biomethane available. Current landfill systems are inefficient, leading to significant fugitive methane emissions, while many wastewater treatment facilities lack anaerobic digesters or flare excess biogas. The document advocates for a shift toward organic waste diversion and anaerobic digestion, which can result in negative lifecycle emissions. It highlights the potential for waste-derived fuel to power 10.4 million cars or 13.7 million homes and suggests that the EPA's designation of biogas-derived electricity as a renewable biofuel could generate 90 million renewable identification numbers (RINs) annually to support electric vehicle infrastructure.

• The United States has a significant untapped potential for waste-derived energy, with the capacity to produce 10.5 million metric tons of biomethane annually from municipal solid waste (MSW) and wastewater, though currently less than 2 million metric tons is recovered.
• Waste-derived biomethane could provide substantial energy offsets, potentially producing 4.5 billion gasoline-equivalent gallons of fuel to power 10.4 million cars, or 17,000 megawatts of electricity to power 13.7 million homes.
• Current waste management is a major source of methane emissions because landfills are inefficient at capturing biogas, and many wastewater treatment facilities (WWTFs) either lack anaerobic digesters or flare their biogas.
• Diverting organic waste from landfills to anaerobic digestion is the most effective way to reduce heat-trapping emissions and can even result in negative lifecycle emissions.
• The potential for biomethane varies by state based on waste type; for example, New York's potential is primarily from wastewater (over 65 percent), while California's is primarily from landfills (over 55 percent).
• The EPA's designation of biogas-derived electricity as a renewable and cellulosic biofuel could generate approximately 90 million renewable identification numbers (RINs) annually, supporting the transition to electric vehicles.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (2015). The Benefits and Implications of Waste-derived Power and Fuel. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2015/08/Trash-to-Treasure-fact-sheet.pdf

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. The Benefits and Implications of Waste-derived Power and Fuel. 2015. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2015/08/Trash-to-Treasure-fact-sheet.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=The Benefits and Implications of Waste-derived Power and Fuel |date=August 2015 |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2015/08/Trash-to-Treasure-fact-sheet.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientists2015benefits, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{The Benefits and Implications of Waste-derived Power and Fuel}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2015}, month = aug, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2015/08/Trash-to-Treasure-fact-sheet.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }