Hog waste to power Illinois farm in pilot project by Ameren

Missouri and Illinois utility Ameren is working with the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the University of Illinois-Chicago to study the feasibility of using hog manure to generate heat and power in Carlyle, Ill.

Ameren Executive Rich Wright said Ameren's Renewable Energy team has been exploring a number of renewable energy options—but this one, at the site of a farm owned by The Maschhoffs Inc., is the first one ready to be announced publicly.

An initial study is concluding in May. If the results are favorable, Ameren would have an anaerobic digester and generator installed at the site by the end of the year.

Manure collected would be stored in the digester. Methane gas would then be siphoned off the manure and used to power the generator, which could produce between 200 and 400 kilowatts of electricity. The electricity would be used by the farm, which has a peak electric demand of over 700 kilowatts. The heat created by the generator would be used to heat the digester.

"It would be a good deal for The Maschhoffs because it would collect a waste byproduct—methane gas—from the manure and convert it to energy for use on the farm," said Wright.

Ameren would be expected to benefit from the renewable energy credits generated by the project.

The Illinois EPA had been looking for ways to promote a CO2 sequestration program that rewards farmers for eliminating green house gases that are created by hog waste.

Ameren provides fuel and energy-related products and services for 2.4 million electric customers and nearly 1 million natural gas customers in a 64,000-square-mile area of Missouri and Illinois.

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