Eastern Ontario Is Canada's Green Energy Patch

[jpak]

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/story?id=52844

Alberta may be Canada's oil patch, but Eastern Ontario may be Ontario's only "green energy" patch for the next few years. The Ontario Power Authority (OPA) recently announced changes to Ontario's standard offer program for renewable energy that will limit new projects in almost all parts of Ontario except Eastern Ontario. A new map of available transmission capacity in Ontario was released on June 2.

According to Ted Cowan of the Ontario Federation of Agriculture, "The province became a leader in North America by implementing the Renewable Energy Standard Offer. Ontarians with power line access can produce and sell clean power to the grid. For example, a dairy farm with 80 milking cows can earn about CAN $50,000 a year extra by making electricity with the manure."

Eastern Ontario is already leading the way on this technology, which is widely used in Europe. On May 28th, Ontario's Chief Energy Conservation Officer, Peter Love presented Vankleek Hill farmers George, Linda and Terry Heinzle with a certificate of recognition. Linda and Terry Heinzle had installed a biodigester to process and convert manure from their 260-cow operation and generate electricity.

The electricity and associated waste heat used for space heating produced from the Heinzle's biodigester (approximately 4,300 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per day) produces between 7 to 10 times the energy necessary to operate the farm operations and residence and they sell the rest to the Ontario Power System. Terry Heinzle's brother George has also installed a system on his adjacent farm.

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[PetrusMonsFormicarum]

1. BC is Canada's Kind Green Bud Patch

But seriously, Methane harvesting and diversified micro-power generation is truly a wave of the future. I work with one farmer here in Oregon who powers more than half of his equipment AND heats his home with power generated on the farm.