This stuff could catch on.
Dave, after I left your place I drove past the Elk River Power plant (near Anoka, MN). "Every day, up to 1,500 tons of municipal waste arrives at the Elk River Resource Processing Plant. Recyclable steel, aluminum and items that cannot be burned are removed; the remaining waste is processed into RDF and it is delivered to the power plant. The RDF is then burned to generate the high pressure steam needed to power the plant’s generators. This fuel is considered a biomass fuel, similar to plant matter and animal waste. Municipal waste is a renewable resource and using it to generate electricity helps conserve natural resources such as oil, coal and natural gas.
Elk River Energy Recovery Station’s three generators produce up to 29 megawatts of electricity from up to 1,000 tons of processed municipal solid waste called refuse-derived fuel. "
http://www.greatriverenergy.com/makingelectricity/biomass/elkriverstation.html
I really like this approach to making energy. Another cool thing I learned on this Minnesota Trip was that the state makes about 14% of it’s energy from Wind. (That wind blowing from the South helped our Ford Focus get 48 mpg between Kansas and MN.) Thanks again for your hospitality.