A chicken/egg farm in Queensland is attempting to reduce its power bill by harnessing the power of chicken poo.
CEO Geoff Sondergeld hopes that the installation of power-producing digesters will drastically cut their cost of electricity. Although the power company will not permit them to go completely off-grid, the infrastructure should pay itself off within 5 years.
One of the designers of the project, Quantum Power’s Richard Brimblecombe, said in 2013 that they anticipate carbon emission reductions of up to 1,000 tonnes per annum, while methane emissions should be cut by 6,000 tonnes CO2e.
Anaerobic digesters and biogas generators are nothing new and if you’ve ever taken a long hike through the countryside you’ll eventually have stumbled across one. However, this is the first time an Australian egg producer has made the investment.
As farmers have to deal with both the cost of disposing of waste and buying energy, biogas generators are becoming more and more important. Expect to see many more of them on our rural and agricultural landscapes.
