A waste-to-biogas fuel conversion plant scheduled to be built in Elmira Canada is facing stern opposition from 6 local residents. This issue is being taken to civil mediation to be resolved in an agreement. This issue has been disputed for two years, and will be heard on June 20.

Why the Proposed Plant Issue is Going into Mediation Services

The plant is scheduled to be built on the north side of Elmira. It is to be located only a few meters from residential streets. This $18-million facility represents a number of concerns for local residents. Truck traffic, noise and health risks are not the least among them.

The plant itself is designed to extract methane gas from animal and plant waste products, which is then piped into a power plant generator. This would provide enough electricity for about 2200 homes. Resident of Elmira, Dan Holt said, “It's not something that fits in a town.”

Word from the Plant's Side about the Mediation

In regard to the civil mediation, Chuck Martin, the project's principal, stated that he hoped the mediation would “calm a number of fears in the community.” He does admit, however, that it probably would not make everyone satisfied with the results. To quote Martin: “Based on our assessment of the risks, we exceed the requirements of the law.”

Further, according to Martin, resolving the dispute from the plant's end would not be as simple as moving it further north. Beyond having to buy new land, it would further complicate things by necessitating new environmental assessments, and it could also cause problems with the Feed in Tariff contract that was drawn to supply power to the local grid.