Power plant fueled by methane to be finished soon

The $8 million, four-megawatt plant will be located at Waste Management's Eco-Vista landfill in Tontitown. Projections call for it to produce enough electricity to power about 4,000 homes.

Jay Maruska, the project manager for Waste Management's renewable resources division, says the company has to destruct the methane anyway and using it to generate power is one way to make money off of that process. He says it makes more sense than burning off the gas.

The power will be sold to utility companies to be sent into the region's electrical distribution grid.

Maruska says when the Tontitown facility goes online, it will join about 60 similar generators on other Waste Management landfills.

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