When our trash is hauled away each week, we usually don't give it a second thought. 

But as it turns out, instead of rotting away in a landfill, our trash can be used to generate electricity. 

According to the Associated Press, 20 megawatts of this kind of electricity will be generated from a landfill in Irvine, where ground broke Thursday. That's enough to power more than 14,000 homes.

Professor Jack Brouwer, associate director of the Advanced Power and Energy Program at UC Irvine, has more about the process of turning trash into electricity.