MEDIA ADVISORY: E.P.A. and City of San José officials will tour zero waste facility turning food scraps into renewable energy

SAN FRANCISCO - Tomorrow, November 25, the E.P.A.'s Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator and City of San José officials will tour the city's Zero Waste Energy Development anaerobic digestion facility where food scraps are turned into renewable energy and compost for local farms. The facility's state-of-the-art dry anaerobic digesters use bacteria to break down food waste in an oxygen-free environment, converting it into methane biogas to generate electricity. The facility can digest and compost 90,000 tons of food waste and produce 1.6 megawatts. San José aims to achieve zero waste by 2022 and diverts 74 percent of materials from landfills through reuse, recycling, composting and anaerobic digestion.

WHO:
E.P.A. Regional Administrator Jared Blumenfeld
San José Mayor Chuck Reed
San José Councilmember Xavier Campos
San José Environmental Services Department Director Kerrie Romanow
Zero Waste Energy Development Representatives

WHEN:
Tuesday, November 25, 2014 (1:30 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.)
Note: arrive early to gain safety gear; change of clothing recommended due to organics odor

WHERE:
685 Los Esteros Rd., San José, California

WHAT:
Tour Zero Waste Energy Development anaerobic digestion and compost facility

VISUALS:
Large hall housing 16 digesters where all of the organics are moved; engines where energy is generated from organics; pipe room where methane biogas from organics is piped to energy equipment; deodorizing equipment and compost

MEDIA KIT:
http://www.epa.gov/region9/mediacenter/ad-sanjose/

RSVP REQUIRED: Credentialed press who would like to attend should email to [email protected] to RSVP with your name, cell or email info, and media affiliation by four p.m., Monday, November 24.

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