Power to poop! DVO, its partner Magic Dirt and customer Green Cow Power all received biogas awards during the American Biogas Council’s (ABC) annual awards program.

“We are honored that DVO, Green Cow Power and Magic Dirt all received ABC biogas awards this year,” said DVO, Inc. president, Steve Dvorak. “Everything we do at DVO is focused on furthering innovation in sustainability for our customers, the environment and the planet. It’s rewarding to see three of our projects recognized.”

DVO received the Innovation of the Year award in the Technical category for its Phosphorus Recovery (PR) system, a fully commercialized and economical treatment step that removes up to 95 percent of the total phosphorus from large-scale farm and commercial waste streams and up to 50 percent of total nitrogen content from manure slurry. By treating these wastes first in DVO’s patented Two-Stage Mixed Plug Flow anaerobic digester and then employing the add-on PR system, farmers conserve valuable minerals and protect natural resources.

Owned by the Furrer and Martin families and based in Goshen, Indiana, Green Cow Power was honored with the Agricultural Project of the Year award. Each day, the two DVO digesters at Green Cow Power process three semitrailers of manure collected from five local dairies. They also collect food production and biodiesel processing wastes from the surrounding community to power 3.15 MW of installed generation capacity. The digested solids are used as cow bedding and the digested liquids as fertilizer for crops. Brian Furrer developed and operates Green Cow Power and also runs Bio Town Ag in Reynolds, Indiana, which produces 6 MW from manure and various organic waste streams.