The Viability of Methane Production by Anaerobic Digestion on Iowa Swine Farms

Energy production and use has long been a major policy concern in Iowa. The 1990 - Comprehensive Energy Plan for Iowa\u27established\u27two-statewide goals around which • current energy policy is structured: To meet all future demand for ener^ by-increasing efficiency rather than supply • To increase the use of alternative energy resources from 2% ofIowa\u27s total energy consumption to 5% bytheyear 2005 and\u27iO% by 2015 A potential alternative energy source that may move Iowa\u27nearer these goals^s methane recovery., Currently, about five megawatts of energy are produced from methane gas in Iowa (Iowa Comprehensive Energy Plan 1998). This represents a minuscule amount of the energy produced in Iowa. Most of this energy comes from methane recovery at landfills, but some is produced by methane recovered from anaerobic digestion at industrial sites.\u2