Some California dairy farmers are brilliant! Remember that study from years ago that said that methane emissions from cows (cow farts) were contributing to the rapid increase in global warming? While the guy who founded the Weather Channel is not so sure about global warming, a group of California dairy farmers have ignored the global warming debate altogether and have done something practical with the cow-methane data. These farmers have created a large holding pond where they have collected cow manure and lots of water to separate the methane from the manure. This holding pond, which is about about 500 yards wide and 33 feet deep, is lined with plastic and domed to funnel the methane into a central pipe. The methane is then piped into a power plant and turned into electricity. One cow power pond provides about all the power needs for 1,200 homes. Talk about a renewable resource! Can you imagine how much power is available in Texas, Oklahoma, Nebraska and many many other places in the South, Southwest, and Midwest? We need a national initiative to hop on this idea and I am not kidding this time. Hope lots of farmers,ranchers, and government types find this post and/or the article linked below. This could be and should be big!
http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSN0440606220080304?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&rpc=22&sp=true
