LANDFILL WASTE AND BIOFUELS
LMS: Waste to bioenergy Landfills produce significant quantities of a potent greenhouse gas. Without companies such as LMS, these gases would escape to the atmosphere. Though it may not garner much mainstream media attention, biogas capture has been a quiet Australian success story, says Tiana Nairn.
Three generations of the enterprising Falzon family: John, Matthew, Elyce and company founder Emmanuel Falzon
36 AUTUMN 2021
EACH YEAR Australians generate over 74 million tonnes of waste and dispose of some 27 million tonnes, but have you ever wondered what happens to all the non-recyclable rubbish collected from the kerbside and businesses each week? Fortunately, around 82 per cent of Australia’s disposed waste, which includes organic matter such as food scraps, paper, cardboard, natural textiles and garden waste, is delivered to landfills with biogas capture systems. Better still, three-quarters of this waste is destined for facilities with bioenergy generation, which is the largest source of waste to energy in Australia. Landfills have evolved significantly from ‘holes in the ground’. Modern sites are equipped with liners, leachate management systems and sophisticated containment systems designed to improve environmental protection alongside biogas capture activities pioneered by specialist companies such as LMS. The scale of landfill biogas operations is extensive: LMS services 48 landfills across Australia and two in New Zealand. Across these, it operates 28 bioenergy facilities and 19 flaring facilities, three of which are being upgraded to bioenergy facilities over the coming year. To date, LMS has captured over two billion cubic metres of landfill biogas, installed more than 3,300 biogas wells across Australia and abated over 40 million tonnes of carbon emissions from the earth’s atmosphere. LMS’ complete in-house service includes design, engineering, construction, installation, operation and maintenance of biogas capture and generation facilities and the sale of all output products (eg, Electricity, Australian Carbon Credit Units and Large-Scale Generation Certificates). All up LMS is responsible for nearly half of all landfill biogas capture in Australia, making it Australia’s largest carbon emissions reducer. Its bioenergy facilities, which are 100 per cent grid connected, also deliver synchronous, baseload and dispatchable renewable energy which assists the electricity network with critical services such as inertia, voltage control and fault ride through. It’s a significant win for the environment and
electricity network and quite an achievement for a company whose origins are somewhat remarkable.
Seizing the opportunity Nearly 40 years ago, Emmanuel Falzon noticed the grass kept dying on an oval next to the family’s brickyard business. With an inquisitive mind, his investigations revealed gas was escaping from what turned out to be an old landfill, with the breakdown of organic matter creating biogas, around half of which is methane. Emmanuel had aspired to find an alternative fuel source for the brick kilns and had now effectively unearthed the solution. He went on to successfully pioneer the commercial collection and conversion of landfill biogas in Australia. By 1988, the Falzon Landfill Gas Company had become the first national organisation to concentrate entirely on landfill biogas-to-energy. Its successor, LMS Energy, was formed by Emmanuel’s son, John Falzon in 1996. SIMS Metal Management acquired a stake in 2001 and subsequently three generations of the Falzon family have brought their diverse expertise into the business that now employs around 150 people. Continuous innovation is the hallmark of the multigeneration family business that has installed solar farms at four landfills and two further related sites ranging from 100kW to 1.5MW, and deployed engineering expertise to design and build a custom solar mounting system enabling solar over former landfill cells.
Environmental imperatives Matthew Falzon, who works closely alongside his enterprising father John, and is the grandson of company founder Emmanuel, says climate change policies are one of the key motivators for LMS and other biogas sector participants. “Methane is a potent greenhouse gas, with a global warming potential around 28 times higher than carbon dioxide. Hence, its capture and destruction offer significant environmental benefits and this is recognised through the issue of Carbon Credits. “Landfills with high biogas capture rates and bioenergy generation can be carbon emissions neutral, meaning for every tonne of waste that ends up in landfill, no net emissions from this waste can be achieved. The renewable energy generated from landfill bioenergy facilities also helps displace (offset) the use of fossil fuel based electricity (eg coal) in the grid,” he explained. In the current policy environment, LMS is typically able to provide biogas capture systems at no cost to Councils or other landfill operators and offers the benefits of improved environmental outcomes and a share of revenue gained. However, wholesale electricity prices are declining significantly due to the increased supply
