WastAway wants to transform Murfreesboro's garbage into fuel. Will city agree?
CORRECTION: An estimated 90% of Murfreesboro’s trash could be diverted from landfilling with 70% being converted to WastAway's SE3 biomass fuel (a coal equivalent) for boilers, according to a city staff proposal. A previous post incorrectly reported the number for fuel conversion.
WastAway wants to transform Murfreesboro's garbage into a fuel source.
Instead of burying trash for free at Middle Point Landfill, Murfreesboro officials are considering development of a $45 million WastAway building to covert garbage into a biomass fuel on Butler Drive in an industrial area on the city's south side.
Four Murfreesboro City Council members present Wednesday (April 13) voted unanimously to tell staff to continue pursuing an arrangement with WastAway, a Warren County-based company which prides itself on analyzing municipal solid waste differently.
"We are solidly against Middle Point," Murfreesboro Mayor Shane McFarland said.
For years, McFarland and other city officials have complained about odors from Middle Point Landfill, located near Murfreesboro's northern boundary.
In comparison, the WastAway operation will have "no odor," Murfreesboro Assistant City Manager Darren Gore told the city council.
Meanwhile, the mayor and city council oppose a plan to expand the landfill 99 acres. Officials estimate the landfill will be full by July 1, 2026.
Other community leaders and residents have expressed environmental concerns about the landfill, which is located by East Fork Stones River, the drinking water source for the city and much of Rutherford County.
Middle Point Landfill is located off East Jefferson Pike and U.S. Highway 231 North (Lebanon Road) in the county's Walter Hill community.
Although voting to pursue the arrangement, Murfreesboro City Council member Kirt Wade advised staff and the present elected officials that they should be careful to examine the WastAway proposal to prevent the city from wasting as much as $50 million on a faulty project.
"I don't want us to be a guinea pig," Wade said.
McFarland and fellow council members Shawn Wright and Rick LaLance also supported the potential agreement with WastAway.
“This is the first step for Murfreesboro to have solid waste independence from Middle Point Landfill or any other landfill for that matter," McFarland said in a press release after the meeting.
Middle Point Landfill: Why regional committee, citizens continue to oppose expansion
McFarland said the city wants to work with leaders in Smyrna, La Vergne and Rutherford County to pursue a sustainable solution to solid waste.
"I hope our work with WastAway can set the standard for a regional solution that others can adopt," McFarland said.
Murfreesboro Vice Mayor Madelyn Scales Harris attended the meeting but left before the vote on WastAway's proposal. Fellow council members Bill Shacklett and Ronnie Martin were absent.
Public hearing set on limited landfill: How officials want to trim Middle Point Landfill dumping by 70%
How WastAway operates
WastAway uses conveyor belts and magnets to sort out metals and plastics, and converts the remaining trash into a fluff product that can be used as a fuel source. It's an acceptable alternative to coal or wood in boilers, Gore told the council.
For each ton of SE3 biomass fuel that replaces coal or other fossil fuels, 1.7 tons of Green House Gases are avoided, Gore added.
An estimated 90% of Murfreesboro’s trash will be diverted from landfilling with 70% being converted to WastAway's SE3 biomass fuel (a coal equivalent) for boilers, Gore stated.
"We were very attracted to that," Gore said. "I think it's cutting edge."
City paid $55K for WastAway study
Last July, the city entered into a $55,000 feasibility study with WastAway to determine if a buyer for the fuel source from Murfreesboro trash was possible.
Gore told the council that WastAway obtained an April 12 letter of intent from Argos Cement to enter into a 10-year agreement. Argos would pay $57 per ton for the biomass fuel to use at a plant in the Birmingham area.
The plant in Calera, Alabama, is 226 miles from Murfreesboro, so this price may provide minimum net revenue after transportation, according to another April 12 letter sent to Gore from Mark S. Brown, the chief executive officer of WastAway.
"But it gives us a viable outlet for the fuel that is ready to sign on the dotted line," Brown said in his letter.
WastAway will pitch fuel product to Tennessee Valley Authority
Brown's letter also said WastAway is meeting with Tennessee Valley Authority staff Thursday (April 14) to discuss TVA using the SE3 produced in Murfreesboro. The solid waste company plans to pursue other potential buyers of the fuel source, Brown said.
The WastAway arrangement also could replace the city's previous plans to build a solid waste transfer station on Butler Drive where trash would be dropped off before being hauled off to out-of-county landfill.
The city has pursued a transfer station because Middle Point is expected to close within five years.
The transfer station operation would be much more expansive than WastAway, Gore said.
Reach reporter Scott Broden with news tips and questions by emailing sbroden@dnj.com. Follow him on Twitter @ScottBroden.
By The Numbers: Middle Point Landfill
Size of existing landfill: 207.3 acres
Estimate by Murfreesboro officials for landfill to be full: July 1, 2026
State permitted cubic yards of waste allowed at landfill: Nearly 38.8 million
Proposed expansion by landfill owners, Republic Services: 99.45 acres
Proposed additional cubic yards of waste if expansion is allowed: 32 million
Percentage increase of cubic yards of waste if expansion is permitted: 82.5
Sources: Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation and Murfreesboro Assistant City Manager Darren Gore
This article originally appeared on Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: Murfreesboro may work with WastAway to convert trash to fuel product
