PAST NEDRs

April 12, 2024 — Presentation and discussion with National Grid on Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) and other programs of interest to water resource recovery facilities. Presentations by: Mike McDonald, Brian Barkwill, and John Karlin.
Link to Recording

January 12, 2024 — “Doing More with Less: The Latest Enhancements in Anaerobic Digestion” with Micah Blate, P.E.
Link to Recording

October 13, 2023 — Dr. Jeffrey McCutcheon of the University of Connecticut provided an update on Department of Energy Research Grant Project “A Digitalization, Automation, and Optimization Platform for Improved Resiliency and Consistency of Distributed Anaerobic Digestion for Wastewater Resource Recovery”.
Link to Recording

July 14, 2023 — Brendan Curran with ZwitterCo will present on “Enabling Nutrient Recovery in Digestate Management Applications”
Presentation Slides
Link to Recording

April 14, 2023 — Nora Goldstein, Editor of BioCycle, and Coryanne Mansell, Client Services Strategist at the Center for EcoTechnology (CET), talked about “Food Waste Digestion Trends in the Northeast” along with guest panelists including a farmer, a wastewater treatment facility operator, an organic waste hauler, and a regulator.
Presentation Slides
Link to Recording

October 14, 2022 — Adam Lirette with Ishigaki USA LTD will discuss a new technology to improve the dewaterability of anaerobically digested sludges.
Presentation Slides
Link to Recording

April 8, 2022 — Nick Elger and Tom Frankiewicz from U.S. EPA Climate Change Division, AgSTAR & Global Methane Initiative, review EPA’s Biogas Toolkit, including an Anaerobic Digestion Screening Tool.
Presentation Slides
Link to Recording

January 14, 2022 — Dr. Jeffrey McCutcheon, University of Connecticut, on Department of Energy Research Grant Project titled “A Digitalization, Automation, and Optimization Platform for Improved Resiliency and Consistency of Distributed Anaerobic Digestion for Wastewater Resource Recovery”
Link to Recording

October 8, 2021 — Suzie Boxman, PhD, Environmental Research & Education Foundation
EREF’s Survey of Anaerobic Digesters and other related projects.
Presentation Slides
Link to Recording

July 9, 2021 — Michael Boerman, Natural Upcycling
Anaerobic Digestion of Food Wastes
Link to Recording

April 9th 2021 — Co-Digestion with Food Waste
Greater Lawrence Sanitary District’s Start-Up Experience
Link to Recording
Link to Presentation Slides

January 8th 2021 — Vetting AD Feedstocks

Presenters: Chris Muller (Brown & Caldwell) and Bob Wimmer (Energy Systems Group)

Considering Co-Digestion to supplement wastewater solids to feed your anaerobic digestor and increase your revenues? This session of the NEDR covered best practices for vetting feedstock from both an engineering/design and implementation/operational perspective.

Link to Recording
Link to Presentation Slides

April 24, 2020 — Anaerobic Digestion/Biogas Project Funding Opportunities

Presenters: Sarah Deslauriers (Carollo Engineers) and Dave Baran (author of the WEF Fact Sheet “Introduction to Bioenergy Funding through Public Private Partnerships”)

With rising energy costs, depleting resources, and the increasing threat of climate change, the use of bioenergy and the reduction of greenhouse gases (GHGs) has gained interest within the wastewater sector. While water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs) operating anaerobic digesters can utilize digester gas to generate clean renewable energy onsite, capital costs for these systems can be prohibitive for a municipality, creating a barrier for implementation of these systems. This presentation will summarize various funding programs and mechanisms that can ease the financial burden, including low interest loans, partial funding via grants, revenue generation or partnerships with developers.

Link to Recording
Link to Presentation Slides

January 10, 2020 — Decentralized Resource Recovery for Distillery Stillage and Animal Waste

Presenters: William J. Guarini and Bobby Levine, Ph.D. Digested Organics, Inc.
Sponsored By: Ceres Partners and Digested Organics, Inc.

Summary: Digested Organics, Inc. has developed a novel stainless-steel tubular ultrafiltration system capable of handling very high solids (>10%TS) to process stillage and animal waste material, producing a transparent filtrate and concentrated animal feed or fertilizer product. The filtrate is further processed by a novel forward osmosis and reverse osmosis system to reclaim clean water for reuse and/or discharge along with a second value-added concentrate product. Pilot test data and results from the first commercial installation at a distillery (90,000 GPD stillage processing rate) and a long-term operating system a 750 head dairy farm will be discussed. This technology is applicable to a variety of food and beverage facilities, providing a new and cost- effective solution for onsite wastewater treatment. The equipment is available in a fully integrated and automated package for easy onsite operations that require minimal operator attention. Start-up and shutdown are completely automated and the equipment has a wide turn down ratio to handle both variable flows and variable loading.

October 4, 2019
NEDR #14

Topic: Making use of microbial data from anaerobic digesters in New England and throughout the world

UMass Amherst professors Caitlyn Butler and Nick Tooker, and graduate student Sally Cordero, recently collected samples from ~ 20 anaerobic digesters, mostly in New England. Those samples are currently being analyzed for the amount and type of microbes present (along with a larger set of samples from around the world). In this quarter’s roundtable, we will present a brief overview of the sampling campaign and some of the data gathered. We will then focus the discussion on soliciting feedback about the kind of questions we should be asking to best make use of this extensive and unique data set that is relevant to practitioners including operators, engineers, and manufacturers.

See…
Recording of NEDR #14 webinar, including slides, presenters, discussion, Oct. 4, 2019
Slides of NEDR #14, Oct. 4, 2019

NEDR #14 sponsored by….

Caitlyn Butler is Associate Professor and Graduate Program Director in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at UMass/Amherst. She earned her PhD in Civil Engineering from Notre Dame (2010). Her research objectives focus on developing energy-efficient treatment strategies for both water and wastewater treatment, including work on biofilm systems where microorganisms use counter-diffusional chemical gradients to accomplish treatment goals, scalable process designs that can be integrated into existing treatment infrastructure, and the ecology and function of the microorganisms that facilitate treatment. Dr. Butler is also interested in developingand assessing the effectiveness of educational techniques and strategies to improve engineering education.

Nick Tooker is Professor of Practice in Civil and Environmental Engineering at UMass/Amherst. He has a PhD from Northeastern Univ. (2018) and a Master’s from Univ. of CA/Davis. In addition to extensive teaching experience, Dr. Tooker has worked on enhanced biological phosphorus removal, microfiltration, and other advanced wastewater treatment processes.

PAST ROUNDTABLES & UPDATES:

No summer 2019 NEDR.

April 5, 2019
NEDR #13
Topic: Training and ADdressing Operations Challenges

FEATURING: Eric Spargimino, CDM Smith, Manchester, NH

Eric Spargimino, Environmental Engineer, LEED AP, has been on CDM Smith’s Biosolids and Bioenergy Community of Practice for more than a decade, participating in planning and design work related to AD for MWRA’s Deer Island WWTP and, most recently, the massive thermal hydrolysis and AD installation for the Trinity River Authority (TRA) that serves Dallas, TX. Eric will share lessons learned about AD operations challenges, which he picked up when training TRA and other operators getting started in AD operations.

See….
Eric Spargimino: Training & ADdressing Operations Challenges, April 5, 2019
Sam Rajendran: ThermoGen Organic Rankine Cycle Engine, April 5, 2019

NEDR #13 sponsored by:

Mr. Sam Rajendran of R & D Dynamics is a mechanical engineer with 14 years experience working in the high-speed turbo-machinery field. His current focus is development and commercialization of an oil-free Organic Rankine Cycle system, which he will present at the beginning of this webinar.

January 4, 2019
NEDR #12
Topic: Technical Optimization of AD

FEATURING: Technical AD perspective from Michigan…

• Joe Tesar, Quantalux, Ann Arbor, MI

• Dana Kirk, Anaerobic Digestion Research and Education Center (ADREC) at Michigan State University

• Chad Antle, Bioworks Energy LLC, Flint, MI

Antle, Kirk, & Tesar Slides
CMI Slides presented January 4, 2019
CMI References for residual wastes systems (PDF)

NEDR #12 sponsored by…

___________

October 5, 2018
NEDR #11
Topic: ADvancements Around the Region - Roundtable

FEATURING:

• John Fischer, Branch Chief, Commercial Waste Reduction and Waste Planning, MassDEP - What’s New in MADssADchusetts?

• Brian Paganini (VP, Managing Director) & Michael Curtis (Project Development), Quantum Biopower - What’s New in CT?

• YOU: AD practitioners from around the region - WhADt’s New Where You Are?

Slides Notes

___________

July 13, 2018
NEDR #10
Topic: How Food Scraps & Other Organics Work in Municipal Digesters -  An Update on Co-Digestion Research

FEATURING:  Professor Matt Higgins, Ph.D., Bucknell University, Lewisburg, PA

Dr. Higgins has led critical and timely research for WERF (now WRF) and other organizations on understanding biosolids odors, reactivation & regrowth, anaerobic digestion, and co-digestion of various organic residuals (biographical details). For this webinar, he provided an update on recent research on co-digestion.

Webinar Slides - NEDR #10 - July 13, 2018
Recording of Q & A / Discussion - NEDR #10 - July 13, 2018 - Topics: impacts of high phosphate (e.g. on dewatering); relation to rapid rise factors are mixing, viscosity of solids, and gas production rate; why odor goes down when food waste is added; cost of element analyzers; has anyone had bad experience with any particular added feedstock?; blending protocol for food waste samples for testing for COD; why mixing food waste slurry releases heat (heats up).

Sponsored by:

___________

April 6, 2018
NEDR #9
TOPIC: Where the Feedstocks Go: Exeter Agri-Energy in Maine

Anaerobic Digestion (AD) at Exeter Agri-Energy (EAE) and Agri-Cycle's Role in Feedstock Sourcing.  Sarah Wintle and Greg Williams provided an overview of this leading northern New England food scraps recycling and AD operation.  A new, huge digester went online at EAE in 2017, and it's gobbling up an expanding portion of organic wastes from Maine and beyond.

Slides        Notes

 
___________

January 5, 2018
NEDR #8    Sponsored by our website sponsors.
TOPIC:  ...Engines! 

What have we learned about buying, operating, & maintaining biogas engines in New England?
Agenda:
—Why choose an engine for biogas utilization? (compared to micro-turbines, etc.) - pros & cons
—Current options
—Greater Lawrence Sanitary District’s experience with recently purchasing, permitting, & installing 2 engines
—Essex Junction’s experience switching from micro-turbines to an engine, including start-up concerns & successes
—Operating & maintaining engines at Lewiston-Auburn WPCA
—Questions & Discussion

Slides presented at NEDR #8 - Engines! (PDF)
Audio recording of NEDR#8 webinar
   PART 1 - GLSD (MP3)
   PART 2 - Essex Junction (MP3)
   PART 3 - Lewiston-Auburn (MP3)
 

___________

October 6, 2017
NEDR #7
TOPIC: ADvancements in Mass & Around the Region

Presenter: James Doucett, Clean Energy Results Program Director, Mass DEP

Followed by a Roundtable of updates:  food waste processing facility in Charlestown, MA; the new digester complex at Johnston, RI; co-digestion & biogas management at Lewiston-Auburn, ME; and co-digestion ramping up at Greater Lawrence Sanitary District, No. Andover, MA.

Slides presented at NEDR #7
Notes, including Roundtable updates

NEDR #7 was sponsored by Wangen America.

___________
 

July 7, 2017
NEDR #6
TOPIC:  Digester Operations: Optimizing & Tracking Key Parameters

Presenter:  Chris Muller, Ph.D., P. E., Principal Engineer, Brown and Caldwell, Andover, MA.  Chris is a wealth of technical knowledge on anaerobic digestion and is continually involved in research to optimize digester operations. He's excited about digestion and looks forward to addressing your questions & challenges!

Slides presented by Chris Muller

NEDR #6 was sponsored by Huber Technology. 
Slides presented by Steve Macomber

___________

April 7, 2017
NEDR #5
TOPIC:  Types of "Wastes," Types of Digesters, Types of End Uses
Farm digesters & diverting food & other organics in Vermont

Presenter:  Alex DePillis, Senior Agricultural Development Coordinator; VT Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets

Slides presented by Alex DePillis
Guidance: How to Send Food Processing Waste to On-Farm Anaerobic Digesters
VT Food Processing Waste Import Form for Farms
 

___________

January 6, 2017
NEDR #4
TOPIC: Digester cleaning & maintenance

Presenters:

• Richard Weare, Capital Projects Manager, Greater Lawrence Sanitary Treatment District (GLSD), No. Andover, MA
  Richard has worked in operations at GLSD for many years, including during and since the commissioning of the District's three digesters in 2002. He is overseeing the current installation of a fourth digester and combined heat & power (CHP) systems.

• Paul Senesac III, President & CEO, P&H Senesac, Milton, VT
  Paul established P&H Senesac Inc in 1985, getting into the septic tank business and ultimately in the municipal & industrial waste treatment and cleaning business. The company is now a nationwide service business providign solids dewatering, lagoon cleaning, and digester cleaning.

Weare presentation slides

___________

October 7, 2016
NEDR #3
TOPIC:  Co-Digestion Results in Net Energy Producer

Technical details of East Bay MUD's ground-breaking, net-zero digestion & energy systems. 

SPECIAL GUEST PRESENTER:
John Hake, who grew up in the Springfield, VT area, is the Manager of the Resource Recovery Program at East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) in Oakland, CA.  EBMUD was the first water resource recovery utility in the U. S. to reach net-zero energy production - and then net positive energy production.  They’re a leader in digestion, co-digestion, and energy generation.  http://www.ebmud.com/wastewater/recycling-water-and-energy/

Presentation slides
Notes from discussion

___________
 

July 1, 2016
NEDR #2
TOPIC: Co-Digestion: Adding outside feedstocks

Presenters:

• Jim Jutras of Essex Junction, VT, which has processed in its digesters FOG, landfill leachate, food processing residuals, and more - for many years.

• Mac Richardson, Lewiston-Auburn, ME, where, over the past year, they have begun experimenting with taking in outside feedstocks.

Presentation Slides (PDF)

___________
 

April 1, 2016
NEDR #1
TOPIC:  Introduction & Organization

A successful first NEDR webinar.
   Slides/Notes