Last Friday’s New York Times article Army Hopes Trash-To-Diesel Project Can Lower War-Zone Risks, Costs hits a number of interesting points related harnessing the energy value of waste. The management of energy and waste, in the military especially, poses significant challenges.  If the Army Corps of Engineers and Covanta Energy Corp are successful they will not only help to reduce the amount of waste heading to “burn-pits,” but it will also cut down on the fuel costs, health risks and inherent dangers of fuel envoys. The article points out this is not the Army’s first trash-to-energy effort, but it is their first foray into developing a waste-based diesel fuel. This diesel fuel will be advantageous for the Army because it will be molecularly identical to crude oil-based diesel.

Testing will occur at Covanta’s facility in West Wareham, Massachusetts, and the company hopes to be able to gauge the economic viability of the project by the end of the year. It is the  continued research and development of processes like this one that will help to reduce the environmental burden of waste and offer lasting energy solutions.