LOWELL, Mich. - The former operator of the failed Lowell biodigester is trying a different project in the state of Kansas, hoping this time it doesn't smell up an entire community.
Greg Northrup, who spearheaded the biodigester's development and operations for his company Lowell Energy AD is now organizing a project in Sumner County, Kansas south of Wichita.
Northrup is now the president for a company called VNA Corp, based in Grand Rapids. The company wants to build the facility in Kansas to harvest natural gas from wheat stalk.
"This project is nothing like the biodigester," Northrup said. "We've been doing this same process (harvesting natural gas) the past five years in Germany for one of the largest suppliers of natural gas there. It's not new technology".
But people in that rural area of Kansas are skeptical because of the Lowell biodigester failure. Many recently attended a public meeting expressing deep concerns about the validity of the project.
The biodigester in Lowell was shut down last year after multiple problems caused a huge stink to percolate in the city. The facility was built to take waste and turn it into electricity but it never functioned correctly.
Contractors and engineering experts concluded the construction on the original biodigester was not done correctly leading to the terrible stench.
"There will be no odors," Northrup said of the plant in Kansas.
He confirmed the project will cost $50 million dollars and employ 50 people.
►Make it easy to keep up to date with more stories like this. Download the WZZM 13 app now.
Have a news tip? Email news@wzzm13.com, visit our Facebook page or Twitter.