EPA has released an interim report, "Evaluation of Combined Heat and Power Technologies for Wastewater Facilities," which serves as a planning-level tool for wastewater professionals and provides an examination of commonly used and emerging combined heat and power (CHP) technologies for converting anaerobic digester gas to electrical power and process heat. The report includes detailed technical information about existing technologies for producing heat and power from biogas including: internal combustion engines, gas turbines, microturbines, and fuel cells as well as other beneficial uses for digester gas. For the full story, click here. To view the report, click here.   

Recently, EPA released the "Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) in the United States: 2009 Facts and Figures" report. The annual report provides the most recent available data on waste generation, recycling and disposal of MSW in the U.S. from 1960 to 2009. The report provides additional detail by material types, including paper, glass, metals, plastics, food scraps, yard trimmings and other materials. It also examines trends in source reduction, recycling, combustion and landfill disposal. Overall in 2009, Americans produced about 243 million tons of MSW, or about 4.3 pounds of waste per person per day.  To access the report, click here.

Syracuse University South Campus | March 23
Syracuse, NY 

10:00 - 3:00 PM

Minnowbrook Conference Center | April 27-29
Blue Mountain Lake, NY 

This three-day conference, hosted by EFC, focuses on the needs of municipal leaders by providing technical assistance, seminars, workshops, discussions, project sharing and networking sessions. Conference attendees will include supervisors, mayors, council/board members, clerks, and other interested community leaders. Training topics will cover finance tools, state and federal funding updates, community engagement, succession planning, sustainable materials management, and more. Conference registration will open February 4. For more information and to register, click here.

New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection is awarding $13 million in grants to assist local governments in improving their recycling efforts. Municipal governments will receive 60 percent of the money, which comes from a $3-per-ton surcharge on trash disposed at solid waste facilities, and is to be used for outreach and compliance efforts. The money left over will be allocated to county solid-waste management and household hazardous-waste collection programs, county and state promotional efforts and recycling research. In 2008, the Garden State recycled 59 percent of the 22.1 million tons of solid waste it generated, an increase from the previous year's rate of 37.9 percent. For the full story, click here. 

Feb. 3-5, 2011:

10th Annual New Partners for Smart Growth; Charlotte, NC.

Details

Mar. 17, 2011:

Porous Pavement in Cold Climates, Rosamond Gifford Zoo; Syracuse, NY.

Details
 

Mar. 23, 2011:

Greening the Gray: Innovative Infrastructure Solutions and Funding Updates; Syracuse, NY.
Details

Mar. 24-25, 2011:

NYS Green Building Conference; East Syracuse, NY.
Details
 

Apr. 27-29, 2011:

Smart Management for Small Communities: Practical Resources for Governance; Blue Mountain Lake, NY.

Details
 

May 17-18, 2011:

22nd Annual Nonpoint Source Pollution Conference; Saratoga Springs, NY.
Details

Welch's Harvest Grants for School Gardens,
Applications due Feb. 6.

Details
 

Technical Assistance for Customer-Sited Biomass Energy Projects in NYS, Applications due Mar. 1.

Details

Helpful links for funding sources, as well as a number of published funding guides, can be found here at the EFC website.

The Environmental Finance Center at Syracuse University is tasked by US EPA with facilitating the development of sustainable communities across EPA Region 2: New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Affiliated with the SyracuseCoE Center for Sustainable Community Solutions, EFC enhances the administrative and financial capacities of state and local government officials, nonprofit organizations, and private sectors to make change toward improved environmental infrastructure and quality of life.