Ag Alert. November 9, 2022

Dairy digesters use cow power to make clean energy By Ching Lee

dairy sector has cut 2.2 million met- ric tons of its total contribution of 7.1 million metric tons of carbon di- oxide-equivalent greenhouse gas, Mitloehner said. Researchers also continue to study ways to reduce the main source of meth- ane from dairies—enteric emissions from cow belching. Mitloehner noted a handful of feed additives have been shown to be “quite effective in reducing dairy methane without affecting perfor- mance of milk quality” when added to the cow’s diet. “If we continue on the current tra- jectory, we have calculated that we will achieve climate neutrality in this decade in our dairy sector,” he said. Fiscalini Farmstead in Modesto, which also operates a cheesemaking facility, was one of the state’s first adopters of digester technology. It in- stalled its first digester in 2008 and is now building a new one. Dairy farmer Brian Fiscalini described the old and current generations of digesters as analogous to the BlackBerry and the latest iPhones. Before 2002, fewer than five dairies operated digesters, according to the California Environmental Protection Agency. In those days, the biogas produced by the older digesters ran

With more than 100 methane digesters operating in California—and more than 100 others in various stages of develop- ment—the Golden State has become a leader in harnessing so-called “cow pow- er” to produce renewable fuels and other clean energy. In doing so, California dairies are re- ducing methane emissions from their farms and well on their way to becom- ing climate neutral—that is, getting to a point where they no longer cause addi- tional warming, said Frank Mitloehner, an air quality specialist at the University of California, Davis. “The whole world views us right now as a role model,” he said. Mitloehner made his remarks to a group of mainly legislative and state government staffers on their way to look at two Central Valley dairies with digester technology and a company that makes biofuels from dairy manure and other agricultural waste. The tours were arranged by the California Farm Bureau, California Bountiful Foundation and

Members of a tour group walk through Fiscalini Farmstead in Modesto. The dairy farm built its first methane digester in 2008 and is now building a new one to produce renewable biofuel.

California Cattle Council. Even though dairy manure digesters have been around for decades, their numbers have exploded in recent years thanks to state funding aimed at help- ing dairy farmers reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The building of digesters

is a key part of the state’s strategy to cut methane emissions produced by dair- ies and other livestock. As required by Senate Bill 1383, the sectors must pro- duce 40% less methane than they did in 2013. To date, state digester projects have reduced emissions coming from some 200 dairy manure lagoons. They do this by placing covers over the lagoons to trap biogas that previously went into the air. This biogas is then turned into usable biofuel. In covering the lagoons, the state’s

See DIGESTER, Page 10

The Produce Safety Rule is Here; ARE YOU READY?

Farm Employers Labor Service (FELS), an aliated company of the California Farm Bureau (CAFB), has partnered with the Safe Food Alliance through a California Department of Food and Agriculture grant contract, as their designated training provider for Central and Southern California, to conduct the required Produce Safety training for growers. ALL TRAININGS BEGIN AT 8 AM September 7, 15 and 21:

THE UTILITY TRACTOR. REDEFINED. RETHOUGHT. RELENTLESS.

California Farm Bureau Harvest Room 2600 River Plaza Drive, Sacramento October 5: Glenn County Farm Bureau 831 5th Street, Orland November 15: Yolo County Farm Bureau 69 West Kentucky Ave., Woodland

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4 Ag Alert November 9, 2022