April 30, 2008 - Waste Management has announced plans to power its California trash-collection fleet with cleaner-burning fuel made from landfill gas, Reuters reports.

The company will partner with engineering firm Linde Group on the $15.5 million Altamont, Calif., facility, which will convert gas produced from decomposing organic matter into liquified natural gas. When completed in 2009, the facility will be the largest of its kind, producing 13,000 gallons of fuel annually.

"[This project] couldn't come at a better time since oil and gas prices are going through the roof," says Waste Management spokesman Wes Muir.

The main goal of the project, however, is to help Waste Management achieve its goal to cut fleet emissions by 15%, according to Muir. "It's going to save us some money, but primarily it's going to reduce emissions," he says.

Muir estimates that the gas conversion project will enable the company to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 30,000 tons a year.

In October, Waste Management unveiled a 12-year, multimillion dollar plan to develop new waste technologies and improve the company's environmental performance.