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Wednesday's Internet Edition, October 08, 2008.
Barnyard train to be biogas powered
State fair to showcase new technology
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It sometimes take a natural partnership to solve problems in this world, and Pacific Gas and Electric is on board, bringing California dairy cows to the fair who will provide the gas power necessary to run a children’s train.
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Local gas and power provider Pacific Gas and Electric, in conjunction with developer BioEnergy Solutions, will showcase what may very well be the green-wave of the future for power, all provided courtesy of California dairy cows.
Two Jersey cows will be on hand at the fair, along with 150,000 cubic feet of clean methane gas to power the ride. The ride, called the Barnyard Animal Train, is located in the Kaiser Permanente Kids Park at the state fair. Kids will have the fun opportunity to take a ride and learn more about renewable energy options for the future.
The ride will be powered with gas from California’s first biomethane injection project at Vintage Dairy in Fresno County. The biomethane will be used to run a 10-kilowatt generator that will power an engine pulling three train cars filled with children on a 40x20 oval track.
Biogas is produced by the anaerobic digestion, or fermentation of organic material, such as cow manure. In addition to providing PG&E customers with a clean renewable resource, biogas provides the dairy farmers in PG&E service area with a new source of revenue and removes methane, a potentially hazardous greenhouse gas, from the air.
California is home to approximately 1.8 million dairy cows on 2,000 farms. A milk-producing cow weighing 1,400 pounds produces an average of 120 pounds of manure daily. Under the long-term contract approved by CPUC, BioEnergy Solutions will deliver up to three billion cubic feet of renewable natural gas a year to PG&E.
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