Paul Ciszek <nospam@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> writes
>
>There are several chemical/biological techniques that could in theory be
>used to turn manure into petroleum-like fuels.
Yes, methane production for one. This is used at a household scale in
parts of india because burning cow dung loses nutrients, particularly
valuable phosphorus.
>According to one site,
>manure is too pricey a feedstock--it has value elsewhere, primarily as
>fertilizer, and fuel makers would have to bid against other buyers.
It has a significant value as fertiliser, and as a soil micro-organism
food, and as a physical soil quality ameliorator.
>According to another site with different issues, there are lagoons
>overflowing with unwanted, unusable manure.
Often its simply stored for the correct time to apply it. Typically
autumn (before an autumn-sown crop) or spring (before a spring-sown
crop). Its a most valuable nutrient and soil amelioration product,
slightly hampered by the high cost of storing and handling it.
>Someone who is no more a
>farmer than I am suggested that the problem could be seasonal demand and
>non-seasonal production. Since I don't know ****, I figure I should ask
>some people who actually participate in agriculture:
>
>1) Is there a net surplus of manure, or a net demand for it, or both at
> different times of year?
That depends of location, individual farm and other factors.
>2) Are there farmers currently paying for manure? Are there farmers
> currently paying to get rid of manure?
Probably so, particularly in parts of europe with high density of high-
intensity animal agriculture (eg holland) and those with high density of
arable-only (particularly vegetable) production (eg eastern eangland).
>3) Is there any "agricultural waste" (defined as pretty much anything
> that used to be part of a plant or animal, or passed through the gut
> of an animal) that is genuinely unwanted and could be hauled away
> for free, yet whose supply would be more or less predictable and
> reliable? (We'll take the jokes about zucchini as already said.)
Almost certainly not, in general. Even straw has a surprisingly high
value just for the fertiliser it contains.
--
Oz
This post is worth absolutely nothing and is probably fallacious.
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