Methane readings from the taz-Zwejra engineered landfill on southern edge of Maghtab are “very encouraging”, Wasteserv Malta CEO Ing. Vince Magri has said.

In a wide-ranging interview in today’s issue of the Malta Business Weekly, Ing. Magri said the prospect for recovering natural gas such as methane from Malta’s engineered landfills is highly sought after given the steep rises in the international price of oil.

Green energy created from the recovery of methane holds the potential of meeting as much as three per cent of Malta’s energy needs across the board.

“We have had very, very encouraging results from work carried out so far,” Ing. Magri said.

“We have an indication of 60 per cent methane, against 40 per cent carbon dioxide, which is considered very high for landfills.”

The initial phase of the taz-Zwejra landfill development, the first cell, is already being considered for capping.

“We have covered part of it and have planted turf on top to ensure that no gas is escaping. Any damage to the vegetation above would be a clear indication of this and we have been successful.”

Ing. Farrugia is hopeful that within two years the taz-Zwejra landfill will be capped, no emissions will be registered, gas will be extracted and green electricity will be generated and fed to Enemalta.

“Taz-Zwejra shall be generating electricity without contaminating the environment, while at Maghtab we are spending s8 million to suppress its hazardous emissions. So we have a situation in which one, taz-Zwejra, is giving us positive feedback while the other, Maghtab, is absorbing our resources.”

He added: “In Malta we have the optimum environmental conditions for the production of methane. We don’t have so much rain, we have high temperatures and our waste is still rich in organic material.

“The Maltese kitchen is still very active, families are still cooking more than they are buying packed food and as such we have more biodegradable waste than packaging material waste. This has shifted somewhat over recent years but the levels are still high, with some 60 per cent being biodegradable material.”

The construction of an on-site substation to feed energy created from methane recovery to Enemalta is also in the pipeline.