National Geographic had a post a while back: Pig Poop Helps Power Netherlands. It describes converting methane from hog manure into electricity. This is well on its way to being a proven technology. For example, a Hutterite colony in Alberta has been converting methane to electricity for years.
As I understand it, there are a number of obstacles that keep this from being widely deployed. First, there is a very large cash outlay to set up the project – the Alberta setup cost the colony about 2 million dollars. Second, it may not be possible to retrofit barns to take advantage of this kind of system. Third, some of these kinds of systems do not work well in cold weather which is a huge obstacle to be overcome here in Manitoba. There are doubtless other difficulties that would have to be overcome before this could be used in every barn.
That being said, it’s great that these kinds of opportunities are being explored. The more ways there are to draw value from manure, the more it will be seen as an asset rather than as something to be gotten rid of as quickly and cheaply as possible.
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