Digester Projects
Alliance Dairies
Alliance Dairies, Florida's largest in one location, harnesses DVO digester tech to turn waste into renewable energy, powering 650 homes & earning sustainability honors.
Project Details
- Owners: William McArthur and Ron St. John
- Location: Trenton, Florida
- Date Built: 2012
- Labor Used: [unknown]
- Construction Type: [unknown]
- Years in Service: 13
- Energy Type: Biogas, electricity
- Energy Output Average: Enough to power 650 homes/year
- Input Waste: manure from 6,000 dairy cows, organic waste
- Output Byproducts: [unknown]
William McArthur and Ron St. John established Alliance Dairies in 1990. Today, it is the largest free-stall dairy in one location within the state of Florida. The operation milks approximately 6,000 head of dairy cows and can fill seven to nine milk truck tanks in one day.
Situation
Before any digester
- Conventional electricity is purchased from the utility at market rates.
- Farm used open-air ponds for waste settling. Methane gas from wastes contributes to greenhouse gases at rates 21 times more powerful than carbon dioxide.
- Pathogens such as e-coli and salmonella can be concerns from the use of raw, unprocessed farm wastes.
- Nuisance odor issues can result from manure storage
and application.
After a DVO digester
- Renewable electricity is self-generated and sold back to the utility.
- Methane is consumed by the digester, reducing greenhouse gas emissions from farm wastes by 94%.
- Pathogens in the digested waste are greatly reduced, often to the point of non-detection.
- Up to 97% odor reduction is achieved, as odor is burned away in the biogas engines.
Solution
Project at a Glance
- Received Outstanding Dairy Farm Sustainability Honorable Mention from the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy® in 2015
- Proven DVO, Inc. Two-Stage Mixed Plug Flow™ anaerobic digester (AD) technology installed and fully commissioned in Fall 2012
- Biogas from the digester powers a 1,000-kilowatt generator that will supply over 70% of the dairy’s electricity, which is equivalent to powering 650 residential homes year round
Details
- The dairy site is 1,600 acres, with an additional 4,500 acres owned and rented for replacement heifers and crops
- 450,000 to 500,000 gallons of organic waste go into the digester daily
- Up to 97% odor reduction is achieved, as odor is burned away in the gas engines
Up to 500,000
450,000 to 500,000 gallons of organic waste go into the digester daily
650
Biogas from the digester powers a 1,000-kilowatt generator that will supply over 70% of the dairy’s electricity, which is equivalent to powering 650 residential homes year round
Awarded
Received Outstanding Dairy Farm Sustainability Honorable Mention from the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy® in 2015
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