Dec 24 2013
Gloucester City officials announced today that construction has begun on Organic Diversion's food waste to energy facility. The Organic Diversion facility is the first of several planned projects in the 145 acre Southport Redevelopment Area (SRA). Once completed, the SRA will be transformed from a long vacant, Brownfield industrial site into one of the premier business parks in the region.
The SRA is being redeveloped by Southport Renewal, LLC with engineering support from T&M Associates and marketed by Prime Site Properties.
"This is a great day and it could not come at a better time of year with the holidays approaching," said Mayor William James of Gloucester City. Having Organic Diversion start on the construction of its renewable energy facility in Gloucester City signals the beginning of a new era of development, public access to our water front, and tax ratables to help bring new revenue and business opportunities to our great City," concluded the Mayor in his remarks. A formal ribbon cutting will take place sometime early in the New Year.
"It's been a long road and the elected and appointed officials both here in Gloucester City and neighboring Brooklawn, at the County, and State and Federal levels have all been incredible in helping to make all this happen. The Gloucester City Business Association and the Gloucester City Economic Development Corporation were extremely supportive as well," said Rocco D'Antonio, Organic Diversion's President. "This is the first of many steps to come to help see this area back to its full potential – both environmentally and economically."
The Organic Diversion facility will bring cutting-edge technology and sustainable practices to help create a first of its kind recycling center. The facility will recycle organic waste [source-separated food waste, yard waste, and brush] into renewable energy using dry fermentation, anaerobic digestion technology to produce biogas. The biogas produced will be used to run a combined heat and power unit creating renewable electrical and thermal energy. The by-product of the digestion process will be composted using indoor, Aerated Static Pile (ASP) composting technology providing high-quality compost for use at farms and in gardens.
The Organic Diversion facility will result in the cleanup of a former industrial Brownfield site and create 13 fulltime and 137 construction jobs in addition to contributing to local tax revenues.