Groundbreaking held for Quebecois biogas plant that will supply GreenField Ethanol

In Canada, officials of the governments of Canada and Quebec visited the city of Varennes on Dec. 19 to break ground for construction of the biomethanation facilities of the Société d’économie mixte de l’est de la couronne sud (SEMECS).

The SEMECS project will facilitate the treatment of organic waste generated by residents of the regional county municipalities of La Vallée-du-Richelieu, Marguerite-D’Youville and Rouville. The new biomethanation facilities will be able to efficiently reclaim organic material from various sources and convert it into renewable fuel, i.e. biogas.

Once purified, the biogas will be used as fuel for the Quebec GreenField Ethanol Inc. refinery, and will replace a portion of the natural gas that the company uses in its processes. In addition, farmers who sell their crops to the refinery will be able to use the digestate produced in the biomethanation process as an organic amendment. Local residents will be able to have their food waste, green waste and septic tank sludge treated by local firms rather than having it sent for disposal.