Innovative agricultural waste to energy program will save Marylanders up to $80 million in avoided energy costs while improving the health of the Chesapeake Bay
ANNAPOLIS, MD – Governor Martin O’Malley announced the State of Maryland, in partnership with the University System of Maryland, will enter into a power purchase agreement with Green Planet Power Solutions to purchase a minimum of 10 MW of electricity produced from animal waste in Caroline County. The contract, awarded via the competitive Clean Bay Power process, promotes the use of renewable energy, reduces Maryland’s contribution to agricultural runoff in the Chesapeake Bay, and encourages job creation while promoting Maryland’s farm industry.
“Clean Bay Power is a prime example of how Maryland is leading the nation’s efforts in clean energy, sustainability and a growing green jobs sector,” said Governor O’Malley. “It is only through a diverse, renewable fuel mix that we will be able to reach our aggressive goal of generating 20 percent renewable energy by 2022, create jobs through innovation, and protect our precious environment.”
The Green Planet Power Solutions project, which will be built in Federalsburg and use chicken litter as its primary fuel source, will create 200 construction jobs and 24 permanent jobs, reduce 230,000 pounds of nitrogen runoff annually, and save Maryland between $53.2 M and $80.0 M in avoided energy costs over the fifteen year contract period.
“We are confident that Green Planet Power Solutions will move Maryland closer to our renewable energy goals,” said Department of General Services’ Secretary Alvin C. Collins. “Obtaining electricity from poultry manure or animal waste helps Maryland government to reach its goal of generating 20 percent of its energy needs from renewable sources, all the while improving Bay water quality and supporting the agriculture industry.”
The Clean Bay Power project is one of several initiatives that the O’Malley-Brown Administration is pursuing to assist farmers with creating energy and heat from animal waste and becoming more energy independent, all while improving the health of the Bay. For example, the proposed FY14 budget contains $2.5 million in capital funds for manure to energy projects with proven technology, to be administered by the Department of Agriculture, which will be used to help farmers bring proven energy technologies onto their farms. Another $500 thousand has been proposed for the development of new manure waste to energy technologies. Maryland Environmental Service continues to develop an anaerobic digester, fueled by chicken litter, which will provide electricity and heat to the Maryland Department of Corrections. The Maryland Energy Administration and the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development recently announced the 17 recipients of the Kathleen A. P. Mathias Agriculture Energy Efficiency Program, which provides $1.4 million in grants to cover a portion of the cost of energy efficiency upgrades for selected farms and agribusinesses.
The Clean Bay Power project is an effort by the Maryland Department of General Services, in coordination with the Maryland Departments of Agriculture, Natural Resources, Environment, the Maryland Energy Administration, and the University System of Maryland.
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7 comments:
Terrible idea. The claims about nitrogen reduction are bunk. Now I'll just have to buy chemical nitrogen fertilizer to grow a crop rather than use the organic N found in manure. Chicken poop has over $100 per ton worth of nutrient content that my crop needs, and they want to burn it? It will take far more energy to manufacturer the fertilizer needed to replace the manure than the plant will ever generate. This is all smoke and mirrors to make folks feel like they are do something for the bay when in fact they are just gouging the taxpayer & farmers.
The couple of chicken farmers I know hold their breaths hoping they can find someone to just take for free the chicken litter to use as fertilizer. If not they do something called windrowing which is like composting and reusing so I don't think this is going to cause any kind of shortage of fertilizer 8:22.
Now we can expect another new property tax to clean the air from air poluting toxins made by burning chx "S-tore H-igh I-n T-ransit". The supposed "one-time" property tax for "cleaning the bay" still appears every year with no accountability for how it is spent. TAX & SPEND...
10:48 that's one of the funds they raided and stole from for useless pet projects.
10:26 Your chicken farmer friends must live in a cave. In my area the farmers are paying to remove the litter from the houses and in many cases paying the poultry farmer for the manure. I currently pay $450 a truck load for manure, but that is delivered to my location, and if they can find enough. It is not unusual for manure to be virtually impossible to find at any price during the spring.
I think maybe 12:30 and 10:26 are both correct. This calls to mind a conversation we had a few years ago with the farmer who rents our fields. We asked him why he didn't use chicken manure and he said because if he had a place to store it he would because he could get all he wants for free most of the year. Since he didn't have storage and in the Spring is when it's most beneficial then it become scare with a price tag attached he doesn't use it.
So now chx "manure" will be in the same class as corn... The price will go out of sight because it is being used as fuel, with government subsidies paid for by our taxes...
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