A $92 million (€72.1 million) waste-to-power plant proposed for Maricopa, Arizona, US, has been approved by the Maricopa City Council.

Western Bio-Energy is behind the development, which will generate 30MW of electricity from 300,000 tonnes of green waste a year for around 35,000 homes.

According to Robert Buckingham, president of Western Bio-Energy, the 46-acre site along the Maricopa Casa Grande Highway was chosen because of the open spaces on which the energy crop sorghum could be cultivated.

In addition to this, ‘Maricopa’s central location is perfect for transportation logistics, there was ample land available for our needs and co-locating with Pinal Energy Ethanol Plant to create a “Renewable Energy Zone” made it a home run,’ Buckingham explained.

Creating between 20 and 25 full-time positions and 110 to 120 construction jobs when work starts on the plant later this year, the facility is yet to obtain an air quality permit through Pinal County, in addition to permits for aquifer protection, air quality, local zoning, construction and flood control.