Tuesday February 1, 2011
As we build Vermont's new economy, we must think creatively and develop ways to become less reliant on others, keep more Vermont dollars in the state, and, in time, become more self-sustaining. The goal is local production for local use.
Recently, the House Agriculture Committee took testimony on an exciting topic -- biofuel. Imagine a farmer being able to raise the crops necessary and turn them into all the fuel needed to run his/her tractors! It's being done on at least one farm in Vermont and 50-60 other farmers are doing so to a lesser degree.
This may not sound like a big deal to non-framers but, as fuel costs rise (diesel fuel is anticipated to cost $5 a gallon by spring) there will be a direct impact on the price of food, and everyone I know eats.
There is also an expectation that, sometime in the future, Vermont could produce enough biofuel to power pleasure cars and trucks as well.
What are farmers growing to produce biofuel? Oil seeds, such as sunflowers and canola head the list, but others include mustard seed, penny crest and soybeans. Several farmers are experimenting with test plots of different oil seeds and data are being kept on which crop has the highest oil content, the lowest input needs, and greatest attributes. One farmer bought a large quantity of hemp seed from Canada, which gave the highest oil output of all. The United States is missing the boat to Canada and other countries when it comes to the production of hemp, for this and other reasons.
Nothing is wasted in the process. The byproducts of the oil pressing can be used for feed for the farmer's animals and fertilizer, and canola straw is used for bedding.
One Alburg farmer, Roger Rainville, has been doing research with Heather Darby of UVM Extension. He has grown dozens of different kinds of crops to experiment with. Sunflowers are favored because they are harvested later, after other crops are in, they have a good yield (1 to 1 1 2 tons per acre), and they are beautiful while they are growing.
Roger has even experimented with running 100 percent vegetable oil in one of his tractors rather than turning it into biodiesel first.
Turning vegetable oil into biofuel requires methanol (natural gas) and potassium hydroxide (lye). Research is being done to replace the methanol with ethanol made from sorghum, which is a very hardy plant that grows in Vermont. One farmer, John Williamson of State Line Biodiesel in Shaftsbury, even made his own lye with wood ash and water using the old fashioned method.
Some of the challenges involved in the use of biofuel include the fact that running 100 percent biodiesel breaks down rubber engine parts, but a more frequent filter change solves that problem. Another challenge is the fact that for every gallon of biodiesel produced, 1 4 gallon of methanol is needed, but the sorghum/ethanol replacement may help us achieve more self-reliance in that instance.
Other biofuel sources include high oil-content algae that uses effluent from methane digesters and fish culture to feed the algae. Carbon Harvest in Brattleboro is working with this technology. Switch grass and other grasses, which grow naturally, can be pelletized, though due to high ash content, stoves need to be developed that can utilize the pellets. This presents an economic opportunity.
Much of the work being done has been helped along with grants, often matched with private funds. The Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund has been very active in this area. To learn more, go to their website, www.vsjf.org.
One of the frequently asked questions is how much it costs to produce biodiesel. Results vary, but Roger Rainville figures that it costs him $1.70 to produce a gallon of biodiesel. John Williamson calculates the cost with his system is $3-3.50 per gallon. In either case, they both look favorable if $5 per gallon diesel is waiting just around the corner.
Rep. Carolyn Partridge, D-Windham, is chairwoman of the House Agriculture Committee.