05/04/07 Bill could boost Biogas production

Senator Larry Craig wants to see the development of biogas through anaerobic digestion of animal waste. That's already happening at the Whitesides Dairy at Rupert where Intrepid Technology engineers have turned cow manure into a natural gas substitute. Craig and Nebraska Democrat Ben Nelson are proposing tax incentives and guaranteed loans to stimulate the biogas industry with projects like Intrepid's. CRAIG "Within the legislation itself is a loan guarantee to put a small gas pipeline from the source of production out to the transmission line that's going by or through the valley or something of that nature." The legislation provides tax credits on biogas produced, grants, loan guarantees and a counter cyclical safety net for producers when annual average daily prices of natural gas falls below a certain level. CRAIG "And I think this is part of the new generation of American agriculture that we're going to see out there in the next 15 to 20 years." The Environmental Power Corporation has estimated US biogas production potential from anaerobic digestion systems on dairy, beef and swine farms to be equivalent to 2.5 billion gallons of heating oil per year. Voice of Idaho Agriculture Bill Scott