New York power

Converts landfill gas into renewable electricity, supporting New York communities and producing enough electricity for about 3,000 homes for a year.*

Air quality & health in Niagara County

Niagara County has a population of 209,457. Across five conditions the American Lung Association tracks — childhood asthma, adult asthma, COPD, lung cancer, and cardiovascular disease — it reports a combined 44,812 cases in the county.

The county received a grade of B for ozone pollution. No particle pollution grade is available.

Federal monitoring recorded 240 days of good air quality and 21 moderate days in the county over the most recent year, with 1 day rated unhealthy for sensitive groups.

Long-term exposure to air pollution has been linked to certain health conditions, particularly for children and older adults. Where electricity comes from affects how much combustion pollution is produced on the grid.

These figures describe the county as a whole and are not specific to this facility. Sources: American Lung Association – State of the Air (New York); U.S. EPA Air Quality Index.

The story behind this New York renewable energy facility

Of New York’s 17 biofuel plants, Model City Energy Facility ranks #11 by the electricity it produced in 2024. It sits on Pletcher Road in Youngstown, Niagara County, and runs on landfill gas, the methane that naturally rises from decomposing trash and is captured and burned for power.

The plant began operating in 2001 and produced 30.1 gigawatt-hours in 2024, a gigawatt-hour being a very large unit of electricity, enough to power about 3,000 homes. Its generating equipment adds up to 5.6 MW, a megawatt being a measure of how much power it can deliver at once. Model City Energy LLC owns the facility, which feeds the National Grid system.

Environmental profile

Captures methane released by decomposing landfill waste and burns it to make electricity. Methane traps more heat in the atmosphere than the carbon dioxide produced by burning it, so the gas is collected rather than left to escape.

Nearby places worth exploring

Youngstown sits near the lower Niagara River, close to Niagara Falls State Park and the river gorge. Just upriver is the village of Lewiston, and Fort Niagara State Park is nearby where the river meets Lake Ontario.

Local school district

Lewiston-Porter Central School District

Common questions

* Homes-powered and emissions comparisons are annual estimates based on national averages from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. “Homes powered” describes a quantity of electricity, not direct service to specific households. How we calculate this.