Plasco Trail Road
Plasco’s Trail Road Facility (PTR) is the only operating commercial-scale conversion facility in the world that converts municipal solid waste into a consistent syngas than can run reciprocating gas engines to generate electricity.
Plasco entered into a partnership with the City of Ottawa in April 2006 for the construction of the commercial-scale demonstration facility across from the City’s Trail Road Landfill. The facility has a small footprint (3 acres) and was built on existing landfill space.
Plasco Trail Road was constructed for several purposes:
- Demonstrate Plasco’s technology at a commercial scale
- Produce environmental emissions data that will accelerate permitting of commercial projects
- Incrementally improve the operational and environmental performance of subsystems
- Validate Plasco’s engineering models used for commercial designs
Commercial Scale Demonstration
The Plasco Trail Road facility is operated on a scheduled basis which allows for maintenance and modifications to be performed economically, while providing a platform to directly demonstrate and improve Plasco’s technology on a commercial scale. Plasco Trail Road is permitted under specific regulations that allow operations and testing to proceed within defined limits and controls.
Since the facility first began processing post-recycled MSW from the City of Ottawa in January 2008, operations at PTR have successfully demonstrated:
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Electricity generated by GE Jenbacher engines sold to local utility
- Superior environmental performance
- Production of commercially acceptable vitrified slag
- On site water treatment
"The City of Ottawa has supported Plasco from the get-go and considers it both an important contributor to our local economy and an important solution to our trash problems."
Larry O’Brien
Former Ottawa Mayor, April 2010