New rules intended to keep a tighter lid on methane gas leaking from the state’s landfills as food and garbage decompose went into effect last month. The state Department of Ecology estimates the new rules will affect 26 landfills, around half of those in the state, and will decrease landfill-related methane emissions by around 1.6 million metric tons a year.
That would be a 38% reduction, according to environmental nonprofit Industrious Labs. The new rules mean Washington joins a list of states including California, Oregon and Maryland that have adopted landfill regulations that are stronger than what is required by the Environmental Protection Agency. Methane is responsible for 25% of the temperature impacts of climate change felt today, according to Ecology.
It is a potent greenhouse gas that traps around 28 times the heat per molecule compared to carbon dioxide. However, it lasts in the atmosphere for around a decade compared to thousands of years for carbon dioxide. In 2022, the Washington Legislature directed Ecology to improve methane monitoring and capture at the state’s municipal solid waste landfills.
Typically, garbage and other waste sit in a landfill before a gas collection system is installed. The system uses pipes in the landfill to collect gases like methane, which can be flared or used to make energy. The new rules lower the threshold of when gas collection systems must be installed and shorten how long landfill operators have to install them.
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