By Brian Guzzone

Does a new landfill gas (LFG) tax credit seem like just a hopeful prospect? Are cheap energy prices holding prosperous LFG project deals hostage? If you answered yes, then run - don’t walk - to the EPA Landfill Methane Outreach Program’s (LMOP) 4^th Annual Conference and Project Expo to be held in our nation’s capitol, Washington, DC, at the world- class Renaissance Hotel on December 11 and 12, 2000. This year’s conference theme is "Got Gas? Create Energy! A New Look at Landfill Gas Project Financing, Technology, and Development Opportunities."

1999 LMOP award winners

According to LMOP partners, the biggest barrier projects face is finding financing tailored to meet their needs. For this reason, the LMOP is dedicating a large portion of this year’s conference to presentations on and discussions of innovative financing options. As the conference title suggests, this will be a fresh look at an old dilemma. The LMOP has found speakers with innovative ideas representing all aspects of financing: from grants to municipal financing to quantifying emissions reductions. No player in the LFG industry can afford to miss this event.

The LMOP Annual Conference will also focus on new technology development and uses. LFG is an ideal fuel source with a multitude of uses. Many exciting technologies have emerged recently and show promise as viable alternatives or complements to traditional uses of LFG. The conference will highlight the role these technologies can play in leading the industry forward into the new millennium. Networking opportunities, as always, will be abundant for conference participants. This year the LMOP will have 10 candidate landfills - a mix of domestic and international - presenting information about their sites, including potential project opportunities, funding, and partners, during the conference. In addition, key policy-makers and representatives from the LFG industry, utilities, power marketers, community leaders, and state regulators and permitters will attend. Finally, join the LMOP for a tour of a new, significant LFG project, guaranteed to set a precedent for future projects.

There is no better place to host a conference than Washington, DC: the birthplace of legislation, tax credits, and incentives that affect the LFG industry. The LMOP invites the industry to join us for the 4th Annual Conference and Project Expo as we address issues of concern to you, your community, and your business. Register for the conference on the LMOP Web site at www.epa.gov/lmop.

Brian Guzzone is the LMOP program manager.

MSW
Nov/Dec 2000