Few sights on the American landscape are as iconic as an old-fashioned farm windmill. From the era of Civil War through today, they harnessed the wind to pump water and run machinery. Today, farmers have other means of generating power. Four farms in Michigan have just been selected by Consumers Energy to produce electricity using anaerobic digesters. The closest one in mid-Michigan is in Elsie, in Clinton County. Current State’s Kevin Lavery visited Green Meadow Farms to learn more about the process affectionately called “poop to power.”
Michigan farms turn waste to wattage
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Green Meadow Farms milks 3,200 dairy cows. Their waste could eventually generate up to 800 kilowatts of energy.
WKAR/Kevin Lavery
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Chad Antle with Swedish Biogas in Flint is helping Green Meadow Farms co-owner Darcy Green operate an anaerobic digester that converts methane from cow manure into electricity.
WKAR/Kevin Lavery
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Green Meadow Farms near Elsie is one of the largest dairy operations in mid-Michigan. The farm is working with Consumers Energy to use an anaerobic digester to produce electricity from methane.
WKAR/Kevin Lavery
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Before treatment, the farm stores three million gallons of manure in large tanks.
WKAR/Kevin Lavery
