Cattle Feedlot or Large Dairy
Locating an ethanol plant next to a large cattle feedlot or dairy (also known as a Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation, or CAFO) provides a source of raw energy: cow manure, which is rich in methane gas that can serve as a substitute for fossil fuels.
Number of cattle at the feedlot in Mead, Neb.: 28,000
Tons of manure per year: 300,000
In E3's closed-loop system, the cows' manure is collected immediately through a slatted floor, transported quickly to the anaerobic digester, and used to make methane that serves as fuel for the ethanol plant.
Corn, cellulose or other grain leftover from the ethanol distilling process, called wet cake, is then fed back to the cows. Traditional ethanol plants have to invest in expensive, energy-intensive equipment to dry this leftover grain to prevent spoilage, and then transport it to far-off farms to use as feed. Our on-site cows are treated to fresh wet cake from the nearby plant. We avoid both the cost and fossil fuel pollution of drying and transporting the grain.
In addition, by capturing the methane and burning it at the ethanol plant rather than letting manure gradually release it into the atmosphere, we avoid methane's potent global warming impact—23 times as great as plain carbon dioxide.
Meeting new pollution regulations
Major changes will take effect in July 2007 to the Environmental Protection Agency's regulations governing how such large feedlots and farms handle their manure, presenting a great opportunity for E3 BioFuels.
When spread on fields as fertilizer, two-thirds of the manure runs off into nearby waters. When pooled in giant holding ponds, it presents an ongoing pollution risk.
Stricter regulations will govern both practices from now on, and many CAFOs will find it expensive to make the necessary changes; the EPA estimates some cattle CAFOs will have to close as a result. However, CAFOs associated with our process will meet and even exceed these strict requirements by combining several proven processes to solve the waste management challenges.
Not only does the E3 BioFuels technology provide a way for CAFOs to comply with federal law, it also allows the cattle and dairy industries to become more environmentally responsible.
That's an outcome we're proud to support.