Bio-Energy and P2 in Cumberland County Virginia

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Bio-Energy and P2 in Cumberland CountyVirginia
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Bio-Energy in Cumberland, Virginia

• What we are told
• We are addicted to oil
• This situation demands we find alternative energy
  sources quickly
• Bio-Energy can help
• Poultry-Cumberlands largest revenue source
  creates potential pollution problems
• What we know
• Our addiction is based on technology over the
  past 120 years
• Like any addiction it is going to take a great
  effort by many people to change
• People dont like change unless they see the
  benefits- first change the way we think
• Unified effort- to move past the present patterns
  of behavior
• Think win-win not win-lose
• What we dont know but need to find out-
• How do we go about change so it will benefit
  everyone?
• Who are the stakeholders that need to participate
  to bring about change?
• When is the right time to change?

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Local Concerns

• Soil
• Crop profitability tobacco, peanuts
• Poultry competition - limited
• Increasing tax burden on the Farmer- 61 revenue
  from Agriculture, over 80 of that comes from
  poultry
• Land value increasing
• Increasing restrictions on land use
• Increase in farm regulations- more to come
• Pollution Prevention!

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Energy resources are available in Cumberland

• Animal Waste- Poultry, Cattle, Swine- Large
  number of Poultry Broiler Houses
• Crops- Corn, Soybeans, Switch Grass?
• Landfill Gas-
• Grants-
• Visionary Leadership, Education, Research
• Va Tech- Research, Cooperative Extension
• Va Dept Agriculture Consumer Service
• Benchmarking with others- WVU project, and other
  projects discussed today
• DMME- Robin Jones

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How can we locally utilize Poultry Waste?

• Application on land- fertilizer, limits and
  concerns about run-off into streams
• Burning- air pollution
• Anaerobic Digestion- lets look at this option

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Crops - Fuel and Food

• Soybean oil can go on the grocery shelf or into
  bio-diesel in your diesel truck or car
• Production of Bio-Fuels in 2005 equal nearly 2
  per cent of world gasoline use.
• From 2000 to 2005, ethanol production nearly
  tripled, from 4.6 billion 12.2 billion gallons
• The trigger in 2000 was the 40/barrel price of
  oil
• Bio-diesel starting from a small base of 251
  million gallons in 2000, climbed to an estimated
  790 million gallons in 2005

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Crops to Energy-Net yield and gallons/acre

• Switch Grass- to Ethanol (x) . 500-750
  gallons/acre
• Corn- to Ethanol 1.5 .. 300-400 gallons/acre
  
• Sugar Beets to Ethanol 1.9 .. 500-714
  gallons/acre
• Sugar Cane to Ethanol 8.0 .. 650-665
  gallons/acre
• Soybeans to Bio-diesel (3.24) 50-60
  gallons/acre
• France- Beets, Brazil-Sugar Cane
• Net Yield is the represents the units of
  product for each unit invested

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Grants-

• Governments support bio-fuels production because
  of concerns about climate change and the possible
  shrinkage of the flow of imported oil
• Brazil using sugarcane produces 4 billion barrels
  a year or 40 of its automotive needs as of 2004
• The US using corn produces 3.4 billion barrels or
  just under 2 of its automotive needs as of 2004

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Cumberland County Bio-Energy Strategy- 3 key parts

• Develop a solution to the Poultry waste problem
• Encourage develop of new energy crop (s) with an
  increasing value tied to escalating energy prices
• Review Grant opportunities

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We were convinced that a Poultry Digester was the
best option

• Questions
• Would it work in removing or reducing pollutants?
• Is it feasible
• What are the considerations and sensitivities
• Can we make money?

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Public Health and Anaerobic Digestion-Pathogen
Removal
Dr David Stafford Enviro-Control Ltd
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Agricultural Purpose in using Manures for
Fertilizers.
Maintain organic status of soil, . Sustainable
management practices include minimum tillage and
Organic Agriculture.
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Impacts of Manure Discharges
The most serious impacts are with Slaughterhouse
and hog farm discharges. Topography, soil
structure and shallow aquifers increases the
problem of water quality.
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Pathogens Identified
Pathogens present in sewage sludges and animal
manures are a potential hazard when used as
fertilizer or where discharges to water-courses
may infect humans and animals. Protozoan
parasites (i.e.Giardia, Entamoeba) and bacteria
(e.g.Salmonella) are shed by livestock or humans
and acquired by humans through reservoir and
recreational water.
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Pathogens of Concern.
The fate and transport of human pathogens from
manures will require research followed by
development of appropriate methods and
information to livestock and poultry producers.
Animal manures are a potential source of human
and animal pathogens. Among the pathogens of
concern are Escherichia coli, Salmonella,
Entamoeba, Giardia, Campylobacter and
Cryptosporidium.
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Amoebiosis
Entaboeba histolytica is found in polluted water
in warm climates. It is a disease of large
intestine and can invade the blood stream and
liver forming abscesses. It is transmitted
through drinking water contaminated from feces.
Highly infectious.
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Survival of E. histolytica in water courses
Grows well in warm waters especially if rice
grains or E.coli are present as
substrates. Discharge of sewage into river waters
encourages growth of the disease agent.
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Are pathogens present in animal manures and
human sewage destroyed by Anaerobic Digesters?
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Fate of Entamoeba histolytica
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Acetate reduces E. histolytica metabolism
Increasing acetate concentrations inhibit uptake
of E. coli and rice starch grains by host
cells. Also inhibits metabolism of starch grains.
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Cryptosporidium and disease
The incidence of Cryptosporidium parvum in
manures requires that removal is effective before
use as fertilizer on land. Thermophilic
anaerobic digestion offers such a potential.
The intestinal parasite Cryptosporidium parvum
has increased in incidence in drinking waters
worldwide and requires development of control
systems.
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Question Does Thermophilic A
D remove the infective stages of
Cryptosporidium and Giardia spp.
from animal wastes?
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Removal of Cryptosporidium
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Removal of Giardia
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Conclusions

• DNA Detection of Giardia muris and
  Cryptosporidium muris
• Low end detection in positive controls ranged
  from 1-1000 cysts
• No DNA signal has been recovered from digested
  samples for either species
• Does the action of Thermophilic Anaerobic
  Digestion remove the infective stages of
  Cryptosporidium and Giardia spp. from animal
  waste streams? YES

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Salmonella Removal and Thermophilic Anaerobic
Digestion
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Acetate Influence on Coliform Reduction
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Total Coliform Reduction
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Plant Pathogens.
Use of digester material as fertilizer must be
free of plant pathogens. Fusarium oxysporum -wilt
fungus affecting tomatoes, potatoes and tobacco.
Killed in Digesters in 4 days at mesophilic
temperatures. Corynebacterium michiganense
-bacterial pathogen causing vascular wilt in
Solanaceae plants. Killed in 24 hours in AD.
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Survival of Potato Root Eelworms in Digesters
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Carbon Balance
Conversion of organic carbon in waste materials
using microbial anaerobic digestion processes
enables the carbon to be released as CO2 and CH4.
About 90 of the carbon energy locked in organic
molecules transfer to methane during
methanogenesis, (McInerney, Bryant and Stafford,
1980).
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Anaerobic Digestion of Poultry Litter- It began
with a visit to WVSU

1. On our visit to WVSU we met Dr. Mark Chatfield
   and John Bombardiere
2. We also learned quite a bit about digesters
3. Daryl Bishop, CEM General Manager Pepco Energy
   Services also attended the trip (taking pic)

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WVSU Digester

• 10,000 gallon
• Anaerobic
• No Oxygen
• Thermophilic
• 125 -140º F
• 10 Day HRT

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We learned that Anaerobic Digesters Are..

• are producers of clean, renewable energy
• A component of waste and nutrient management
  systems
• Pathogen and odor killers
• Biological systems- managing the bugs
• Proven/Mature technology for processing organic
  wastes, including poultry litter

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Feedstock- Litter from Poultry Houses is a great
feedstock
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Products of Anaerobic Digestion

• Biogas-below being flared, we will produce
  electricity- methane is 21 times worse than
  carbon in destroying the ozone
• Solid fertilizer and compost
• Liquid fertilizer

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Poultry Litter Results

• Litter Conversion to Biogas
• Material scf biogas/ton litter
  CH4
• Crust/Cake 8,000 - 9,000 60
• Cleanout after one flock 8,000 - 9,000
  65
• Litter Shed for 4 months 5,000 - 6,000
  56
• Cleanout after six flocks 7,000 - 8,000
  58

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Biogas Components

• Methane CH4
• 55 - 65
• Carbon Dioxide CO2
• 33 - 43
• Hydrogen Sulfide H2S
• removed
• Water
• removed

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Feasibility Study Grant!

• Working through the Cumberland Farm Bureau we
  have obtained a 37,000 grant to determine the
  feasibility of building such a digester facility
  in Cumberland, Virginia
• Many of the questions we want answers to related
  to the business case for the facility that would
  require less than 10 acres

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Uses of Biogas

• Electricity sold as green power for a premium
• Boiler- to preheat the digester to 134 degrees
  and clean trucks for bio-security
• Direct use as Natural Gas substitute- direct sale
  to co-located businesses or neighbors

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Potential Revenue

• Gas or electric sales premium prices 7cents per
  kWhr- recent increase noted
• Fertilizer sales- liquid effluent is high in
  nitrogen and no pathogens- solid as much as
  125/ton
• Certified organic compost- pots, pellets (golf
  course gold)
• Tipping fees located near landfill where we
  could get green waste for the digester-
• Carbon Credits

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ECL Digester Plants- Cumberland Plant similar
scale as picture on right
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