Richmond, BC launches household grease-to-RNG pilot
The City of Richmond in British Columbia is piloting a programme to collect leftover household cooking grease and convert it to RNG.
The $115,000 (€80,100) pilot will collect grease, such as from deep frying or frying foods like meats and vegetables, from up to 10 multi-family complexes (around 500-800 units) for one year.
By collecting and converting the grease, the programme could help reduce maintenance and repair costs linked to grease accumulations in the city’s sewer system, as well as clogs in home sewer systems. Richmond reportedly deals with around 30 complete or partial sewer blockages annually, each costing around $1,000 (€690) to fix.
Residents taking part in the scheme will receive containers to fill up with household grease. These will then be sealed, placed in provided carts and collected weekly from each complex. The grease will then be taken to a processing facility in the Fraser Valley and put through an anaerobic digester to produce RNG.
The $115,000 (€80,100) pilot will collect grease, such as from deep frying or frying foods like meats and vegetables, from up to 10 multi-family complexes (around 500-800 units) for one year.
By collecting and converting the grease, the programme could help reduce maintenance and repair costs linked to grease accumulations in the city’s sewer system, as well as clogs in home sewer systems. Richmond reportedly deals with around 30 complete or partial sewer blockages annually, each costing around $1,000 (€690) to fix.
Residents taking part in the scheme will receive containers to fill up with household grease. These will then be sealed, placed in provided carts and collected weekly from each complex. The grease will then be taken to a processing facility in the Fraser Valley and put through an anaerobic digester to produce RNG.
