San Francisco Greasecycle Program
Posted in Biodiesel Fuel | Biofuels | Environment and Sustainability | Transportation | Waste to Energy
For the past several months the San Francisco Public Utility Commission (SFPUC) has begun picking up used cooking oil from restaurants and businesses for free in an effort to find fuel alternatives for its municipal fleet. The city hopes to expand the grease recycling program (called SFGreasecycle) to include small-scale household pickups and eventually power all city vehicles on biodiesel, including public buses and fire trucks. The oil is picked from local restaurants by SFPUC trucks, dropped off at a transfer station, filtered, transferred into a multi storage tank settling system, then decanted for three days. The oil is then sold to a biodiesel plant using bulk transport tractor-trailer pickups.
“Even a little grease causes problems. Fats, oils, and grease (FOG) down kitchen drains dramatically impact the flow and performance of our combined sewer system. Many residents generate only a bit of used cooking oil. But the cumulative effect from a lot of homes contributes to clogging sewers. Please don’t pour ANY used oil down the drain. Instead, collect it in a container and throw it in the trash.”