LYNDEN, Wash. – Anaerobic digestion and nutrient recovery technologies will be discussed at the free Washington State University Anaerobic Digestion Systems Field Day on Thursday, June 9, on two Whatcom County farms near Lynden, Wash.
Lunch and bus transportation to and from the farms are included. Registration is required. For more information and to register, visit http://csanr.wsu.edu/ad-field-day/. The field day is hosted by WSU’s Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources (CSANR).
Anaerobic digestion is a biological process that breaks down materials in the absence of oxygen, resulting in solid and liquid products and biogas. Together with nutrient recovery and other complementary technologies, this process can provide environmental, economic and social benefits while managing organic waste.
“This is a great opportunity to see the state of the art commercial anaerobic digestion system and learn about commercial developments and research efforts focused on improving the profitability and performance of this technology package,” said Tim Ewing, CSANR’s research engineer.
Field day topics will include:
- fine solids recovery
- advanced nutrient recovery approaches
- nutrient recovery products and their agronomic use
- water quality and food safety issues
- economics
- the potential for integration of biochar with anaerobic digestion systems.
Research at WSU to expand anaerobic digestion within a system of complementary technologies is led by CSANR with colleagues in chemical engineering, biological systems engineering, economic sciences, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Research Service.
A series of five webinars recorded this year highlight research on climate, air, water, nutrient and economic impacts of integrating emerging technologies within anaerobic digestion systems at U.S. dairies. The free, recorded webinars can be viewed at http://csanr.wsu.edu/webinars/anaerobic-digestion/signup/
Funding for this field day is provided by USDA NIFA Award No. 2012-6800219814, WERF-EPA Award No. 83556701, NRCS CIG Award No. 693A7516020 and biomass research funds from the WSU Agricultural Research Center.