On August 16th, the Orange County Sanitation District opened California’s newest hydrogen fueling station—the first in the world to source hydrogen from wastewater. The Fountain Valley wastewater facility uses waste gas (produced during the water treatment process) and fuel cell technology to create electricity, heat, and hydrogen—a tri-generation system. As the stationary fuel cell generates heat and 250kW of power for facility use, it also produces 100kg of hydrogen for the vehicle fueling station operated by Air Products. Drivers are excited to use the newest station in Orange County, and it is a much-needed companion to UC Irvine’s station which opened in 2007.

Congratulations to CaFCP members that participated in this first-of-its-kind project: US Department of Energy, California Air Resources Board, UC Irvine’s National Fuel Cell Research Center, and Air Products and Chemicals Inc.

OCSDOrange County Sanitation District has a full wrap-up of the Grand Opening http://storify.com/ocsd_pio/commissiong-the-worlds-first-sewage-fuel-cel..., but don’t miss the KABC-TV segment with an overview of the station, and interviews with Jack Brouwer (NFCRC), Tom Mutchler (Air Products), and Honda FCX Clarity driver, Jim Solomon http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/orange_county&id=83...

Quick tip: keep your eye on California’s hydrogen stations http://cafcp.org/stationmap