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Merrick M
Merrick Jul 10, 2008 14:44:22
Replying to handofdave

handofdave wrote:
A friend of mine works on systems that integrate all the waste from cattle back into the farms energy needs- methane and compost are harvested.
That's laudable, but the problem with burning animal manure is that it's basically burning the soil's fertility.

Animals eat what grows, their shit fertilises the land. If we harvest all the shit, it needs replacing, and that usually means synthetic fertilisers, derived from fossils and responsible for huge greenhouse gas emissions.

handofdave wrote:
The larger market's hesitancy to move into alternate energy has a lot to do with the uncertainties surrounding things like standards for hardware interfaces, types of fuels to engineer for, etc... in a far larger sense its similar to the HD-DVD/Blue-Ray shakeout
I think you're absolutely right there. The cost of making hydrogen America's - just America's - vehicle fuel is measured in trillions of dollars. Who's gonna pay that for the infrastructure if it might end up like Betamax within a few years?

This is yet another way in which the free market fails us. Technologies that exist and could help are being delayed, meanwhile the chance of avoiding runaway climate change diminishes.

H handofdave
handofdave Jul 10, 2008 15:45:54
Replying to Merrick

Merrick wrote:
handofdave wrote:
A friend of mine works on systems that integrate all the waste from cattle back into the farms energy needs- methane and compost are harvested.
That's laudable, but the problem with burning animal manure is that it's basically burning the soil's fertility.

Animals eat what grows, their shit fertilises the land. If we harvest all the shit, it needs replacing, and that usually means synthetic fertilisers, derived from fossils and responsible for huge greenhouse gas emissions.

Hmm, I think from what he described the manure is treated to a process that captures the methane and leaves the solids for fertilizer. I'd have to ask him again about it.. he went over my head a little with a very detailed chemical breakdown of how it all goes once. The basic mission is to develop more sustainable and cleaner ways of doing things, anyhow.