WM marks opening of $57M renewable natural gas facility in DeKalb

DeKALB – Waste Management (WM) marked Earth Day this week with a ribbon cutting on its new $57 million renewable natural gas facility, 18370 Somonauk Road, DeKalb.

Facility tours, public remarks, networking and a ribbon cutting were among some of the highlights of the event.

Brian Snyder, director of operations at WM renewable energy, said it’s an exciting time for the waste hauling company.

“The exciting thing about this whole situation is that the collection truck goes out and collects the trash from each person’s home,” Snyder said. “It comes to the landfill and it turns into a gas through natural breakdown. And to make sure that we stay compliant and do the best thing for the community, we capture that gas and turn it into an energy of some sort.”

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Brian Snyder, director of operations for WM renewable energy, talks Tuesday, April 22, 2025, inside the new WM renewable natural gas facility at the landfill in DeKalb. The facility converts collected landfill gas to lower-emission renewable natural gas which can be used to power homes and natural gas powered vehicles. (Mark Busch)

The DeKalb renewal natural gas facility has been in the works for several years, project leaders said.

Snyder said he will be excited for the facility to open its doors in the coming weeks.

The new renewable natural gas plant, once complete, will make for the eighth of 20 facilities across North America operated by WM, project leaders said.

“It takes about three years to design, get everything lined up, engineered, so that you can start to build it,” Snyder said. “It takes about eight to 10 months to construct.”

The plant is expected to generate about 1 million MMBtu – a unit of measure to record amount of energy required to heat water – per year of renewable natural gas. The gas can then be used by communities as a lower-emission energy source, according to WM. The facility also makes for part of WM’s broader planned investment’s in renewable energy, expected to grow to approximately $1.6 billion by 2026.

Tara Hemmer, chief sustainability officer for WM, said the waste hauler has listened to its customers and strives to be responsive to their interests.

“This is really because it’s what our customers want, and it is about evolving our sustainability and environmental footprint,” Hemmer said.

At 4,000 standard cubic feet per minute (SCFM), the DeKalb facility makes for a standard design for WM, which Snyder said is viewed as a positive.

The waste hauler runs similar facilities as large as 8,000 SCFM, he said.

“By having a standard design makes it very cost effective, very efficient for our employees and very safe,” Snyder said.

Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Director James Jennings pointed to the impact that the new plant will have on DeKalb residents.

“This project will affect people throughout the community, up to 11,500 homes’ electricity based on this project,” Jennings said. “It will have the effect of reducing as many 53,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions. Both of those outcomes directly align to the state’s ambitious energy climate agenda hence why we view [WM] as an excellent partner in this arena.”

Since 2019, the IEPA has invested more than $350 million in renewable energy initiatives while partnering with state agencies, private entities and other organizations to ensure that resources are effectively employed.

Jennings said the IEPA stands in support of the waste hauler’s new initiative.

“Collectively projects like this and other similar items the agency has supported will improve Illinois residents’ quality of life while minimizing utility costs,” Jennings said.

DeKalb County Board Chairman John Frieders gave kudos to project leaders for their commitment to investing in the area.

“As a 50-year resident of DeKalb County and a lifelong farmer, I think that agriculture was at the forefront of sustainability before sustainability was a buzzword,” Frieders said. “I find it heartwarming that Waste Management has embraced this project. It does my soul good to see something like this come on line. I think it is great for DeKalb County. I think it is a testament to Waste Management’s vision.”

Snyder touted WM’s ability to keep the project’s labor local.

“We’ve used about nine local contractors and almost 100 local trades people to build this facility,” Snyder said. “It’s very exciting to be able to show off what we’ve built over time and then, of course, to operate this facility, which is about ready to get going here in the next couple weeks. We’ll be in full production. We have about four full-time employees in this building. They are local employees that we’ve hired just for this facility.”

Hemmer shared that sentiment.

“When we invest in facilities like this, we are creating brand-new green-collar jobs,” Hemmer said. “These are jobs that deliver on sustainability, deliver on innovation and deliver on the promise of a new future.”