The
Vermont Methane Pilot Project is a joint project between the Vermont Departments
of Public Service and Agriculture, with funding from the U.S. Department
of Energy.
The purpose of the project is to promote the use of methane recovery technology
on Vermont dairy farms. This technology has the potential to help farmers
with their nutrient management plans and at the same time provide additional
on-farm income. The project has been designed to consider methane recovery
in a broad context, taking into account its potential benefits as a component
of a comprehensive nutrient management system, as a renewable energy source
and as a strategy for greenhouse gas reduction.
Project Status:
Much of the preliminary work on this project is nearing completion. Below is the current status of project activities. The
documents available below are in Adobe Acrobat PDF format and require
the Acrobat
PDF reader which is free and can be downloaded from Adobe.
- The project has conducted experiments on reducing retention time of manure
in an anaerobic digester. If the retention time is reduced, a smaller digester
vessel can be used which would reduce initial capital costs. Download the
attached growth report here (19KB).
- Research has been completed on the available organic resources in Vermont
that could be digested to produce methane. This research suggests that dairy
manure is by far the largest source of organic material that is available
for methane recovery and that trucking other materials to an on-farm digester
will only be cost-effective in limited circumstances. Download the full Resource
Assessment Report here (151KB).
- The project has completed preliminary feasibility analyses on fifteen
Vermont farms that have expressed interest in this technology. Several of
these farms show a positive cash flow. We will proceed with engineering analysis
and site design for farmers who have think anaerobic digestion may be beneficial
to them. For farms that choose to install methane recovery, the project has
some cost share monies available.
- The project has identified seven principle barriers to the construction of
methane digesters on Vermont Farms. The barriers and
possible solutions are detailed here (19KB).
- The project has established a research and demonstration facility on
a working dairy farm that has 15 years of experience with methane recovery.
Construction on the site is nearly complete and we expect to be up and running
by the end of July, 2000. We will be performing several experiments at this
facility and will use it as a demonstration site to show Vermont farmers
and others how this technology works.
Vermont Methane Project Quarterly Reports
Once we have completed our work with individual farmers, we will begin
to explore ways to educate the rest of the farming community about the costs
and benefits of methane recovery. We will establish links with the various
compost efforts in the state; we will explore the feasibility of fueling
micro-turbines or fuel cells with methane; and we want to think about the
applicability of what we are learning here about methane recovery and electrical
generation to other situations locally and internationally.
For more Information contact:
Jeff Forward
Biomass Energy Resource Center
(802) 262-1009
e-mail: jforward@biomasscenter.org
or
Dan Scruton, Project Coordinator
Vermont Department of Agriculture
(802)828-3836
dan@agr.state.vt.us
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