On Tuesday, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Marie-Claude Bibeau, announced funding of up to $116,800 for the Canadian Biogas Association (CBA) to accelerate sustainable agricultural development.
"Canadian agricultural producers ensure the health of our lands and continue to innovate to reduce the environmental impact of their practices," said Bibeau. "Biogas systems provide them an innovative way to manage their waste, diversify their incomes and grow their businesses, all while reducing their GHG emissions. With the tools offered by the Canadian Biogas Association, farmers will have access to relevant information to help them better understand the opportunities available to them in biogas and renewable natural gas."
The Minister also met with Jennifer Green, Executive Director of the CBA, and Rob McKinlay of Harcolm Farms in Woodstock, Ontario, who installed a factory built mini digester system on his 72-head dairy farm. They discussed the benefits of biogas, how biogas installments work, and the educational resources available through the CBA's new website.
"Canadian agricultural producers ensure the health of our lands and continue to innovate to reduce the environmental impact of their practices," said Green. "Biogas systems provide them an innovative way to manage their waste, diversify their incomes and grow their businesses, all while reducing their GHG emissions. With the tools offered by the Canadian Biogas Association, farmers will have access to relevant information to help them better understand the opportunities available to them in biogas and renewable natural gas."
With funding of up to $28,800 from the Agricultural Clean Technology Program, the CBA launched a campaign to help farmers learn more about biogas. As part of the campaign, the CBA launched FarmingBiogas.ca, a new website with resources to help farmers evaluate the opportunities of biogas, including a self-assessment tool, answers to key questions, profiles of on-farm biogas plants in Canada and more. It also includes a checklist and links to biogas equipment suppliers and technical advisors, acting as a one-stop-shop to help farmers get started.
On-farm biogas systems can help farmers cut greenhouse gas emissions, provide sustainable sources of energy and offer many other environmental advantages. They can also generate additional sources of income and create opportunities for the farm's next generation.
Biogas can be captured and purified to create renewable natural gas, which is fully interchangeable to replace conventional natural gas.
The CBA also received $88,000 under the Canadian Agricultural Strategic Priorities Program to identify clusters of agricultural resources across Canada and assess the potential for renewable natural gas development by region. The CBA will use this information to create a guide to inform agricultural stakeholders about new and emerging renewable natural gas opportunities, encouraging collaborations to develop more sustainable energy systems in Canada.
Biogas is a renewable source of methane gas created when organic matter like livestock manure, crop residue and food waste breaks down in an oxygen-free environment. This process is referred to as Anaerobic Digestion (AD).
Click here to see more...