Two educational webinars, planned for March 14, will examine finance issues and technology options for installing and maintaining anaerobic digester systems.
The webinars, each three hours in length, will address two critical issues in the decision-making process: financing installation and operation of a digester system, as well as the rate of return on the investment, and technology options–what they are and how they are used. The webinars are a collaboration of Farm Foundation, NFP, USDA Rural Development, USDA Office of Energy Policy & New Uses, the AgStar Program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy, and the Wisconsin Bioenergy Initiative of the University of Wisconsin.
Financing an Anaerobic Digester System: In this 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. webinar, dairy farmers and community leaders will share their first-hand experiences financing, installing and maintaining digester systems. You’ll also hear from commercial and private lenders with experience financing digester operations. Topics will include return on investment, private funding, government/private partnership funding options, cost of construction, potential revenue generation streams, avoided environmental costs, tax incentives and cost of operation, including management and labor costs.
Technical Aspects of Anaerobic Digester Systems: This 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. webinar will examine digester technologies–psychrophilic (covered lagoon), mesophilic (plug flow and completely mixed), and thermophilic (completely mixed). Farmer/operators will discuss why they selected a specific technology for their operation, as well as their operational and management experiences with those respective technologies.
Both webinars will originate from Rooms 325-326 of the Pyle Center at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. There is no charge to attend but registration is required. To register for either in-person or online viewing, visit the Farm Foundation, NFP website.
Source: Farm Foundation