Cow Power Helps to Address Local Energy, Environmental Needs Public-Private Partnership Produces Electricity from Manure in California

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Cow Power Helps to Address Local Energy, Environmental Needs

Public-Private Partnership Produces Electricity from Manure in California

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Cow Power Helps to Address Local Energy, Environmental Needs

Public-Private Partnership Produces Electricity from Manure in California

TEXAS, HOUSTON, May. 20 -/E-Wire/-- It's not a cow pie in the sky idea. Producing electricity from cow manure is actually a reality.

Technology to harness the power of manure is now working in a Southern California facility that is recycling the daily manure generated by approximately 3,750 dairy cows to generate electricity.

According to Synagro Technologies Inc., a renewable energy project based in Chino, California during the first week in May produced 1.03 million standard cubic feet of biogas (methane gas) which helps run two generators powering the Chino Basin Authority Desalter Facility serving over 700,000 people in San Bernardino County.

Located in the midst of the Chino Agricultural Preserve, the Inland Empire Utilities Agency (IEUA) digester facility receives manure from several of the over 300 dairies in the area and has partnered with Synagro to operate an anaerobic digester pilot facility that processes the manure and recycles it as electricity. The facility also annually produces approximately 150,000 cubic yards of Class A exceptional quality compost which is marketed as fertilizer.

Anaerobic digestion is a biological treatment process by which organic wastes are decomposed using bacteria to produce methane gas. With the potential of energy production from residual methane gases, many waste generators are turning to anaerobic digestion as a safe, environmentally beneficial, and cost-effective solution for dealing with organic wastes. Utilizing this methane helps reduce greenhouse gases.

Using cow power to clean up the water in the Chino Basin is part of a Public-Private Partnership between the Milk Producers Council, Synagro Technologies, and the Inland Empire Utilities Agency.

The electricity generated using the methane gas from dairy manure helps run the region's water supply facility powering two generators which run a groundwater desalting facility. Through the process, approximately 30 percent of the biogas is being used to generate electricity at the site using turbines to run the digester facility equipment, which substantially reduces the operating costs of the digester. Synagro markets the finished compost to local fertilizer bagging chains and for agricultural applications and horticulture use.

"Its no secret that cows produce a lot of waste â over 100 lbs. per cow each day â and we all remember when the lights literally went out in the state of California a few years ago. Today's technology is being harnessed so that these cows are now being used to generate power and the electricity is helping to clean the water in the area," said Bob Feenstra, Executive Director of the Milk Producers Council. "Cow power is benefiting many people by helping us to recycle and renew our resources. The opportunities and benefits both for the dairy industry and the public are substantial," Feenstra stated.

"This project is demonstrating the enormous potential and opportunities that exist in the area of manure management," according to Ross M. Patten, Chief Executive Officer of Synagro.

"Not only are we protecting the air quality and groundwater in the region, we are also demonstrating how anaerobic digestion technology can recycle organic wastes and convert methane gas into a clean, renewable energy source," Patten said. Synagro is a Houston-based company offering a range of water and wastewater residual management services, focusing on the reuse of organic, nonhazardous residuals including the treatment and conversion of animal manures into beneficial recyclable products.

The company's Agribusiness Services Group provides agricultural industries and owners of private wastewater treatment plants with solutions to their waste management problems. Synagro is the largest company in North America focusing on organic waste management.

For more online information about Synagro Technologies Inc, contact www.synagro.com or call (800) 370-0035.

The Milk Producers Council, based in Chino, California is a non-profit dairy trade organization that has represented dairy farmers throughout the state for over 50 years. Within its office and most of its membership in Southern California, MPC assists its members at the local, state, and national level.

MPC is increasingly and actively involved in seeking and contributing to proactive solutions that will resolve dairy related environmental problems. For more information about the Milk Producers Council, contact: (909) 628-6018.

A single cow generates over 100 pounds of manure each day. Synagro can processes up to 225 tons of manure per day from 3,750 dairy cows

Editors: Please see the below chart and photos illustrating this manure-to-energy technology, the Chino digester facility, and the power of cows.

Synagro Technologies Inc.

George Clarke, (202) 789-6248, [REDACTED-EMAIL]

http://www.synagro.com

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