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A Pennsylvania farmer is powering his family’s dairy farm with something that you’ll find a lot on a farm: animal poo.  Shawn Saylor, 36, is a self-described science buff.  So when faced with skyrocketing energy costs, Saylor turned to technology. 

He’s using manure from the 600 cows on his farm to generate $200,000 each year in savings.  The million-dollar system paid for itself in 5 years.  The electricity powers his farm and a dozen neighboring homes.  And there’s enough left over to sell back to the grid.

“It’s a pretty simple process,” Saylor said.  “Manure comes from the cows, and there’s energy left in the manure.”  The process is known as anaerobic digestion.  A mechanical scraper in the barn pushes the manure into a 19,000-gallon tank.  The poo slurry then moves into the digester, which is 70 feet in diameter and 16 feet deep.  It’s heated there for about 16 days, during which bacteria breaks down the organic matter and produces methane gas.  The gas is then burned in two engine generators to make electricity.  Also, heat from the generators keeps the digester hot, heats the farm buildings and provides hot water.

There’s another huge benefit.  The digesters reduce the poo stink by 98%.  “The farm used to get a lot of complaints from motorists, which is understandable.  It used to stink a lot,” Saylor said.

It’s this type of innovation that will help remake America.  We’re using a substance — in this case poo — which is essentially a free byproduct of a manufacturing process, and using it to generate electricity, which in turn powers the entire manufacturing process.  Call it a green cycle of energy.

Story at CNN

Scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey said there are fewer large-diameter trees growing in Yosemite National Park than in years past, most likely due to climate change.  Warmer temperatures and smaller snow packs are creating conditions that are more difficult for large trees to flourish.

“Most of the water that becomes available in the Sierra Nevada comes from the snow pack,” said Jim Lutz, University of Washington researcher who co-wrote the study.  “Higher temperatures might increase populations of insects or make fungi more aggressive … which all could increasingly contribute to tree mortality.”

When smaller snow packs collect in April and May, trees have less water to sustain them over the dry summer.  Warmer temperatures also increase the severity of wildfires that kill off trees.

The study concluded that the number of large-diameter trees in Yosemite National Park decreased by 24 percent from 1932 to 1999.  Trees in the park’s sub-alpine areas were the most severely affected.

Story at Google News
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