Sludge Watch ==> San Diego - Zero Waste Energy talks biomass plant

[Maureen Reilly]

McEnery explores dirty biz

A front-page story last week covered the re-emergence of former San Jose 
Mayor Tom McEnery at City Hall, where he's often heard these days on issues 
tied to his San Pedro Square real estate and San Jose Sharks ownership 
interests.

But there's one additional matter he's involved in, and this one can fairly



be characterized as dirty business. Or clean, depending on your perspective.
McEnery is an investor in Zero Waste Energy, formed by his friends Rich 
Cristina and Murray Hall last year as an extension of their Zanker Road 
landfill business. Zero Waste wants to use city property near its landfill 
(and across from the city sewage plant) to build a biomass conversion plant, 
and McEnery has been in at least one meeting with Mayor Chuck Reed to talk 
about the issue. He is listed on the company's most recent lobbyist report 
as having had from two to five contacts with Reed on the subject from July 
through October.

The Zero Waste plant would take wood debris - mostly from construction sites 
and yard trimmings - that now gets trucked to a power plant in Sonora County 
and instead use it to produce energy in San Jose. Depending on advances in 
technology, the plant also could someday turn biosolids - the polite 
euphemism for stuff from the sewage plant - into energy.

In announcing his "green vision" in October, Reed endorsed the concept. 
"Through partnerships with innovative companies," he wrote, "San Jose will 
convert solid waste and biosolids into biodiesel, methanol, biogas and 
electricity that will power municipal operations and be available to other 
users."

City environmental services officials said they plan to issue a formal 
request this month to companies interested in making a deal to build a 
waste-to-energy facility near the sewage treatment plant.

http://www.mercurynews.com/peninsula/ci_7675677?nclick_check=1