Sewage-to-Energy Plant Eyed for St. Pete

St. Petersburg leaders plan to spend $2.9 million to design a renewable energy plan that converts methane gas into energy, TBO.com reports.

The City Council has approved a contract with a consulting firm to design a system that would operate at the wastewater treatment plant, off 54th Avenue South, according to TBO.com.

The design is expected to take 15 months. Construction would be completed in two years.

St. Petersburg already spends about $2.6 million a year to haul 36,000 tons of treated sewage to Polk County each year for fertilizer.

A renewable energy plant would enable the city to power the water treatment plant or service vehicles, according to TBO.com.

In addition, sludge from the city’s two other wastewater treatment plants would be piped to the central plant on 54th Avenue.

The plant would save the city $30 million over 20 years.

According to TBO.com, Mayor Bill Foster said:

“There’s nothing sexy about waste; this is a process that we as the government have to provide and it comes at a cost,” Foster said. “Converting that into a sellable or usable product is incredible.”

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