Thread: Dairies go green, harness methane for energy - and cash

Valley dairies go green, harness methane for energy -- and cash

Posted at 08:33 PM on Saturday, Jan. 09, 2010
By Robert Rodriguez / The Fresno Bee

The chairman of the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee said Tuesday that it's unclear whether Congress will be able to pass cap and trade legislation aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions this year.

Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., said there's no consensus on what form a cap-and-trade system would take, but strong desire exists in both the Senate and House to pass other energy-related bills that would curb pollution blamed for global warming.

Bingaman said the concern is that if Congress does not move forward on cap-and-trade legislation, emission reductions will be forced by federal regulators.

Power from dairies envisioned

A Bakersfield attorney and third-generation dairy farmer Monday announced the formation of a "waste-to-energy" company that will work with farmers and Pacific Gas & Electric Co. to turn cow manure into natural gas.

Meanwhile, a Palo Alto-based biotechnology company and two Visalia-based dairy technology companies also announced plans Monday to build a separate facility that would generate energy from dairy waste to power a new ethanol plant in the San Joaquin Valley.

The news of the first operation from David Albers, who has a dairy in Fresno County, came in Tulare on the grounds of the World Ag Expo, which begins its three-day run today.

ND Rep. wants to block EPA carbon dioxide regs
U.S. Rep. Earl Pomeroy believes lawmakers suffering "buyer's remorse" over the House's approval of carbon dioxide limits will support his legislation to block the Environmental Protection Agency from writing its own greenhouse gas restrictions.
Any regulation of carbon dioxide should be Congress' job, the North Dakota Democrat said Friday at the Mandan headquarters of the North Dakota Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives, whose members are worried about the impact of possible carbon rules on electric rates.
"It affects us all, especially right down to every consumer," said Robert Grant, of Berthold, who is president of the rural electric group's board of directors. "The things that could happen with EPA regulation - our costs could skyrocket."
In regard to Fresno hiring a public relations firm to bolster its image: I agree with Fresno City Council Member Jerry Duncan that in the long run, it's what we as Fresnans actually accomplish, not paid-for press releases, that will determine our reputation.
One thing Fresnans can do is to back our own City Council, which recently voted to join 320 other American cities, all of whom have challenged themselves to try to reverse global warming by reducing their greenhouse gas emissions by 7% of 1990 levels by the year 2012. If Fresno could do that, it would really be something to be proud of.
Here's what everyone can do: Learn to practice energy efficiency at home, in the office and in the shop. Find ways to transport people and goods using as little fossil fuel as possible. Increase use of renewable energy sources such as solar panels and methane. Plant more trees, since they store carbon dioxide. Work to get a cleaner city, healthier air, new industries, new jobs, and most of all, cut back on dumping
Tulare Co. may get biogas power plant
Tulare County could be the home of a new power plant fueled partly by "biogas" from cow manure, if a Fresno company's plans bear fruit.
Central California Power is in the early stages of raising money and negotiating contracts that could allow it to build a 217-megawatt power plant somewhere in Tulare County, said Joe Langenberg, sole proprietor of the business.
The plant would generate enough electricity to power about 217,000 homes using a combination of natural gas and methane derived from manure from the region's dairy industry, said Langenberg, an engineer who's worked with giant engineering companies like Parsons Corp. and Bechtel Corp. in the past.
The battle against global warming may turn out to be a boon for a California industry long targeted by environmentalists -- dairies.
Some dairy farmers have been so successful in reducing air pollution from animal waste that they are earning revenue from other industries that need help meeting their own emission goals.
Those transactions are tied to a controversial idea called "cap-and-trade," a system that lets companies meet air-pollution requirements by getting credit for reductions that other companies achieve.
Some critics on the conservative right, often skeptical that global warming is even a real problem, call cap-and-trade a pointless and expensive government intervention. Some critics on the left say the practice allows industrial polluters to buy their way out of tighter emissions controls.
But both state and federal governments are pushing cap-and-trade systems all the same, backed by supporters who say the practice creates a practical, market-driven tool to reduce emissions.
Renee Rippchen, vice president of sales and marketing for BioEnergy Solutions, walks on top of thick sheeting covering a special lagoon for anaerobic digestion of manure at the 2,800-cow Vintage Dairy in western Fresno County.
That has created a potential revenue source for California's struggling dairy industry -- and it could offer a glimpse of how the battle against global warming will be fought nationwide.
"Cap-and-trade does get a lot of people excited," said David Albers, president of the 2,800-cow Vintage Dairy in western Fresno County.
For years, dairies have come under scrutiny because cow manure releases methane as it decomposes. Methane is among the greenhouse gases blamed for global warming.
Across California, however, some dairies have been able to reduce the emissions with methane digesters, which work by capturing gas for use as fuel instead of allowing it to be released.
Albers uses a system that collects methane in covered manure lagoons and processes it. The refined natural gas is fed into a pipeline and sold to Pacific Gas & Electric Co.
Albers also operates a company called BioEnergy Solutions, which helps build digesters. He is trying to raise money to build a network of 40 digesters on dairies throughout the region, and he has been approached by several brokers interested in selling his clean-air credits, also known as "offsets."
"We get lots of offers, but we haven't moved on any of it yet," Albers said. He's waiting for the price to go up.
Brokers and investment firms are taking notice.
"We think the potential for dairies to profit is very good," said Yves Legault, a representative of Financial Solutions Consultant, a Quebec-based firm.
Legault's company is working with 28 dairy operators in the Valley to participate in the offset market.
California is ahead of the rest of the country in the effort to create a cap-and-trade system. While Congress continues to debate how it will reduce greenhouse gases, California passed landmark legislation in 2006. The state has set an ambitious goal of achieving an 80% reduction in 1990 greenhouse gas levels by 2050.
To help meet that goal, the state's cap-and-trade program will go into effect in 2012. That program will set limits on emissions and allow for credits to be traded.
The effort reflects a national movement. Even though there is no mandatory national cap-and-trade program yet, voluntary sales already are taking place on the Chicago Climate Exchange, North America's only cap-and-trade market.
Industrial polluters and investors are hedging their bets and have begun buying credits now in anticipation of a mandatory program -- and a potential price hike.
Dairies aren't the only likely beneficiaries. Other agricultural industries also have found ways to reduce their carbon footprint, through methods such as planting more trees or tilling farmland less often. Credits from those efforts also can be traded.
But to Valley dairy farmers in particular, any potential for extra revenue is welcome. Last year was one of the worst for dairy farmers, who struggled with record low prices. Many dairies shut down.
There are challenges. Unlike most commodities, carbon credits are difficult to quantify.
"This isn't like selling corn that you can touch and feel," said Carl Morris, general manager of Joseph Gallo Farms in Atwater. "Your system has to be verified and measured."
Dairy credits are sold on a per-ton basis, and verification by a third party is necessary to ensure that practice is authentic and the amount of greenhouse gas is measurable.
Another difficulty is that some dairy operators have been forced to shut down their digesters because, ironically, of pollution concerns.
Renee Rippchen, vice president of sales and marketing for BioEnergy Solutions, walks on top of thick sheeting covering a special lagoon for anaerobic digestion of manure at the 2,800-cow Vintage Dairy in western Fresno County.
The San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District has placed restrictions on exhaust from engines, including engines on generators powered by the biogas produced by the digesters.
Ron Koetsier -- an early adopter of methane digesters -- recently shut down his system because he could not afford the $150,000 in upgrades needed to meet the district's air-quality regulations.
Before he shut his system down, Koetsier had produced $12,000 in offsets.
"I know that a lot of people are excited about this cap-and-trade program, but I am not so sure about the whole thing," Koetsier said. "The one thing I know for sure is that the offsets are not going to pay for the upgrades I need."
Indeed, it's still not clear how much farmers might earn from the offset market.
"We are proceeding cautiously," said Greg Tevelde, who runs a dairy in Tipton. "But if someone wants to give me money for something I am already doing, then I'll take it."

http://www.fresnobee.com/832/story/1775722.html

http://www.microgy.com is another company in this field.