Catalyzing Just Circular Communities: A Feasibility Study of a Large-Scale Anaerobic Biodigester to Generate Hyper-local, Community-Owned Clean Energy Infrastructure in Seattle’s South Park

November 2024 Update

Catalyzing Just Circular Communities is happy to share a few updates from several of our partners. The Duwamish Valley Sustainability Association (DVSA) has successfully completed the initial pilot biodigester installation, and operations are set to begin soon. DVSA will include youth in a community outreach event in November, focusing on ways to use the biodigester’s products to benefit the South Park community. At UW, initial community meeting graphics are in development, and a digital model of the biodigester has been created to support future renderings and communication efforts. We have also created an outline and template for our final feasibility report. ECONorthwest plans to use data from the construction and operations of the biodigester to estimate economic benefits for King County and will incorporate insights from DVSA’s November outreach to verify potential environmental and health benefits for South Park. Meanwhile, Brian Allen and Christian Primack Metcalf are advancing the business case analysis from the pilot to a larger-scale unit, drawing insights from similar biodigester projects and refining a sustainable long-term budget and pricing structure.

Overview:

The Just Circular Communities (JCC) collaboration aims to develop community-envisioned, owned, and managed hyper-localized circular economies for frontline communities. This project focuses on a feasibility study for a large-scale anaerobic biodigester in Seattle’s South Park neighborhood, led by the Duwamish Valley Sustainability Association (DVSA). The biodigester will convert food waste into probiotic plant food and clean energy, supporting a community-scale circular economy that reduces reliance on fossil fuels and privatized essential services.

Goals:

Develop Circular Economies: Create community-owned and managed circular systems to support local economies and resilience.
Address Systemic Displacement: Combat economic stagnation and displacement in frontline communities.
Generate Clean Energy: Produce biogas from food waste to provide a renewable energy source.

Approach:

The project combines expertise from designers, engineers, planners, and economists. It will engage community partners in South Park to ensure alignment with community visions. The project will produce:

A schematic design for the biodigester through participatory design methods.
A financial feasibility study and business plan for the biodigester’s operation and end-product markets.
An economic contributions analysis to assess the broader social and economic benefits.

Research Focus:

Assess the feasibility and business potential of the biodigester.
Evaluate economic outcomes and environmental benefits of a community-driven circular economy model.

Why It Matters:

Frontline communities face severe impacts from climate change. By developing localized, community-owned clean energy infrastructure, this project aims to enhance community resilience, provide local employment opportunities, and reduce environmental footprints. The biodigester will support local food production and green infrastructure training.

Activities:

Design Refinement: Work with Chomp Energy to refine the biodigester’s schematic design.
Feasibility Study: Develop a financial feasibility study and business plan with UW Foster School and 360 Social Ventures.
Economic Analysis: Complete an economic contributions analysis with ECOnorthwest using the IMPLAN economic model and EPA’s Waste Reduction Model (WARM).

Expected Outcomes:

Community ownership and management of clean energy infrastructure.
Enhanced local employment and economic resilience.
Reduced greenhouse gas emissions and environmental impact.
Increased support for community-driven environmental justice initiatives.

Dissemination of Findings:

The project findings will be shared with the community through a meeting with a multimedia exhibit and published on the JCC website, allowing community members in South Park, the Duwamish Valley, and beyond to engage with the data.

On the EarthLab blog: From Trash to Treasure: How the South Park Biodigester is Bringing New Life to the Community

Research Team:

Principal Investigator: Catherine De Almeida, Associate Professor, UW Seattle College of Built Environments, Landscape Architecture

Community Lead: Edwin Alberto Hernandez Reto, Project Coordinator, Duwamish Valley Sustainability Association (DVSA)

UW Co-Investigators:
Gundula Proksch, Associate Professor, UW Seattle College of Built Environments, Architecture
Christian Primack Metcalfe, Affiliate Instructor of Entrepreneurship, UW Seattle Michael G. Foster School of Business, Department of Management and Organization

UW Student: Sarah Chu, Graduate student, UW Seattle College of Built Environments, Landscape Architecture

Collaborators:
Todd Schindler, Community Collaborator, Project Coordinator, Duwamish Valley Sustainability Association (DVSA)
Michelle Benetua, Community Collaborator, Director of Strategic Partnerships and Programs, Seattle Parks Foundation
Nathanial Trull, Academic Collaborator, Associate, ECOnorthwest
Todd Schindler, Community Collaborator, Project Coordinator, Duwamish Valley Sustainability Association (DVSA)
Bonnie Gee Yosick, Academic Collaborator, Senior Economic Advisor, ECOnorthwest
Brian Allen, Academic Collaborator, Business Consultant, 360 Social

Innovation Grants