Cool. It might hurt local homebrewers, but this is the kind of example that could lead other municipalities to get behind making their own biodiesel.

Gadsden latest Alabama city turning to grease for biodiesel fuel

GADSDEN, Ala. (AP) — Gadsden is set to become the latest Alabama city to participate in a biofuel program that turns used grease and oil into biodiesel.

The city's Fleet Management Department's "Waste to Fuel" campaign starts next month and officials are asking restaurants and residents to turn in used cooking oil that will be converted to fuel for some of the departments diesel vehicles.

Costs for producing the fuel are considerably cheaper than the diesel fuel now used by the vehicles. City officials also hope the program will cure some of the Gadsden Water Works and Sewer Board's problems with clogged pipes by encouraging people to recycle grease instead of pouring it down drains.

"So far everything I'm hearing is positive," Jack Rutledge, manager of the water and sewer board, said Tuesday. "I think people want to do the right thing environmentally and this is kind of a guide for them."

Rutledge said he has talked to officials with the city of Daphne, which has a similar program. Daphne officials said it has had an impact on sewer blockages there.

"It takes something that has given us a headache and turns it into something that will solve a headache — the cost of what diesel fuel is starting to get," he said.

Auburn University is sponsoring the program and gave Gadsden the $14,000 worth of necessary equipment, which will produce about 55 gallons of fuel in eight hours.

Greg Noah, fleet management superintendent, told The Gadsden Times that gallon jugs to collect the oil will be ordered this week and should be delivered by the end of the month.

The city will spend about 70 cents a gallon to produce its own diesel fuel — fleet manager Jim Barker said they're currently paying $2.75 a gallon for diesel fuel.

"They have a little scent to them," Noah said of the oil fuel. "They have a little french fry scent. It will smell like somebody cooking in the house."

But he quickly added, "It smells better than diesel fumes."

Hoover's biodiesel recycling program, which began with restaurants in March, was expanded to residents in November and has been well received, said David Lindon, fleet manager director for Hoover.

The city collected about 350 gallons of cooking oil from residents in November and got about 200 gallons in December. Officials expect that amount to increase in January as residents turn in oil used to fry turkeys during the holidays.

Lindon said it costs the city 70 cents to $1 per gallon to produce the fuel, depending on the cost of methanol. He said after buying the equipment used to make the diesel fuel, the program is in the black and also is helping the city's sewer system and keeping oil out of the landfill.

The city will average getting about 500 gallons of oil a month from restaurants, he said.

Lindon said homeowners either will pour used oil in their backyards, which causes problems by attracting animals; pour it in the garbage, which benefits no one; or pour it down a drain, which causes clogs and costs the city money in the form of equipment and manpower to unclog drains or pipes.

Rutledge, with Gadsden's sewer board, said people with small amounts of oil that won't be donated should seal it in jars and put it with their solid garbage or mix it with kitty litter or other absorbent materials.

"Never put it in your pipes," he said. "It's going to cause us problems and you problems."