Anaerobic digestion and production of biogas, at a scale not previously seen in the United States, is the recommendation of the St. Paul Port Authority (SPPA) to fuel Rock-Tenn in the years ahead. The recommendation, presented to the Rock-Tenn Community Advisory Panel (RCAP) at its August 4 meeting, came after more than a year of often-contentious study and debate.

Anaerobic digestion would start with agricultural or food processing byproducts as fuel and bacteria as the agent to turn that fuel into methane (also called bio-gas.) Anaerobic digestion for production of industrial quantities of biogas is a relatively new technology. Pete Klein, who presented the SPPA recommendations at the meeting, identified animal manure, rendering plant wastes, and ethanol stillage as raw materials that have been identified for generation of biogas for this project.

To read the full article, visit the Twin Cities Daily Planet.

last revised: August 22, 2008

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