Okeechobee County farmer: 'If anyone is going to save the world, it's the cow'
Updated: 1:24 PM EDT Jul 22, 2022
Angela Rozier
NO MAJOR ACCIDENTS TO TELL YOU ABOUT. IN OUR "FORECASTING OUR FUTURE" COVERAGE, METHANE IS AN EXTREMELY POTENT GREENHOUSE GAS. IT IS EXPECTED TO CAUSE HALF THE GLOBAL WARMING THE NEXT TWO DECADES, AND ACCORDING TO SCIENTISTS A LOT COMES FROM COWS. TIFFANY: THERE'S BEEN A RISE IN TURNING FARM WASTE TO ENERGY. ANGELA ROZIER TRAVELED TO A LOCAL DAIRY FARM AT THE FOREFRONT OF A RENEWABLE INDUSTRY. >> IF ANYONE IS GOING TO SAVE THE WORLD, IT IS THE COWS. ANGELA: THE OWNERS OF THIS DAIRY FARM IN OKEECHOBEE COUNTY ARE WORKING TO HELP THE ENVIRONMENT. >> WE WANT TO REDUCE OUR CARBON PRINT AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. ANGELA THEY'RE USING DIGESTERS : TO CONVERT METHANE FROM COW MANURE INTO NATURAL GAS. >> SO THIS IS A PIT HERE AND WE BASICALLY TAKE THE MANURE FROM THE FARM AND WE ARE LETTING IT DIE AND WE WILL HARVEST THE METHANE FROM THAT. ANGELA COLE VERANO IS A : UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA STUDENT MAJORING IN AGRICULTURE SUSTAINABILITY. THIS FATHER MANAGES THE FARMS. >> THIS IS WHERE HE HAD THE GAS METHANE THAT WILL BE COMPRESSED AND TURNED INTO A LIQUID IT SO IT CAN BE PUMPED INTO A PIPELINE. ANGELA THE LARSON FAMILY HAS : PARTNERED WITH BRIGHTMARK ENERGY AND ACCORDING TO ITS WEBSITE THE GAS WILL BE DELIVERED INTO THE LOCAL, INTERSTATE GAS PIPELINE SYSTEM. THE LARSON FAMILY HAS BEEN IN THE DAIRY FARM BUSINESS FOR DECADE AND THEY CONTINUE TO EVOLVE WHEN IT COMES TO TECHNOLOGY AND THIS IS THE NEXT STEP. [COW MOOS] >> MY GRANDFATHER CAME HERE AND STARTED BUSINESS. ANGELA: THE PLANET LONG BEFORE THEY DECIDED TO BUILD METHANE DIGESTERS, ONE WAY, USING COTTONSEED FROM GEORGIA FOR FEED, A BY-PRODUCT THAT IF NOT USED COULD END UP IN A LANDFILL. >> IT IS TOTALLY RECYCLED. ANGELA THE DAIRY DISTRICT AS A : WHOLE HAS COMMITTED TO BEING CARBON NEUTRAL BY 2050. FARMERS TELL ME THE METHANE THAT'S CAPTURED AND CONVERTED INTO NATURAL GAS, HERE IN OKEECHOBEE, IS THEIR WAY TO HELP MAKE THAT HAPPEN. >> THERE WILL BE A TOTAL OF FOUR METHANE DIGESTERS AND EACH ONE OF THEM WILL BE AT A DAIRY FARM WITH SOMEWHERE WITH 2,000 COWS AND EACH DIGESTER WILL HAVE ENOUGH POWER EVENTUALLY TO POWER THE EQUIVALENT OF ABOUT A THOUSAND HOMES EACH. ANGELA: THOUSAND HOMES EACH? >> THAT'S A LOT OF ENERGY THAT THEY PRODUCE SO IT MIGHT LOOK LIKE A WASTE PRODUCT TO US BUT IT'S PRETTY VALUABLE WHEN W
The Larson Dairy Farm in Okeechobee County is at the forefront of a renewable industry.There's been a rise in turning farm waste into energy and the Larson family is doing their part to help make it happen.Farmers' Futures: Dairy farmers in Okeechobee County struggling long after start of pandemic"We want to reduce our carbon print as much as possible, which is why we've installed methane digesters," said Jenna Larson.Methane is a potent greenhouse gas and is expected to cause half the global warming in the next two decades, and according to scientists, a lot comes from cows."If anyone is going to save the world, it's the cow," farmer Collen Larson said. They're using digesters to convert methane from cow manure into natural gas."This is a pit here and we basically take the manure from the farm, from the cows, and we're letting that digest," said Cole Verano, a University of Florida student majoring in Agriculture sustainability.Verano's father manages the Larson farm.A look at the world around us: WPBF 25 News Forecasting Our Future"Over here, we have the gas methane, which is then going to be compressed and turned into a liquid so it can be pumped into the pipeline," Verano said.The Larson family has partnered with Brightmark Energy, and according to its website, the gas will be delivered into the local, interstate gas pipeline system.The dairy district as a whole has committed to being carbon neutral by 2050."There will be a total of four methane digesters and each one of them will be at a dairy farm with somewhere about 2,000 cows and each digester will have enough power, eventually, to power the equivalent of about a thousand homes each," Colleen Larson said. "That's a lot of energy that they produce so it might look like a waste product to us, but it's pretty valuable when we turn it into methane."Officials are currently doing test runs.The renewable natural gas project at the Larson Dairy Farm is expected to be completed before the end of the year.Follow us on social: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
OKEECHOBEE COUNTY, Fla. —
The Larson Dairy Farm in Okeechobee County is at the forefront of a renewable industry.
There's been a rise in turning farm waste into energy and the Larson family is doing their part to help make it happen.
Farmers' Futures: Dairy farmers in Okeechobee County struggling long after start of pandemic
"We want to reduce our carbon print as much as possible, which is why we've installed methane digesters," said Jenna Larson.
Methane is a potent greenhouse gas and is expected to cause half the global warming in the next two decades, and according to scientists, a lot comes from cows.
"If anyone is going to save the world, it's the cow," farmer Collen Larson said.
They're using digesters to convert methane from cow manure into natural gas.
"This is a pit here and we basically take the manure from the farm, from the cows, and we're letting that digest," said Cole Verano, a University of Florida student majoring in Agriculture sustainability.
Verano's father manages the Larson farm.
A look at the world around us: WPBF 25 News Forecasting Our Future
"Over here, we have the gas methane, which is then going to be compressed and turned into a liquid so it can be pumped into the pipeline," Verano said.
The Larson family has partnered with Brightmark Energy, and according to its website, the gas will be delivered into the local, interstate gas pipeline system.
The dairy district as a whole has committed to being carbon neutral by 2050.
"There will be a total of four methane digesters and each one of them will be at a dairy farm with somewhere about 2,000 cows and each digester will have enough power, eventually, to power the equivalent of about a thousand homes each,"
Colleen Larson said. "That's a lot of energy that they produce so it might look like a waste product to us, but it's pretty valuable when we turn it into methane."
Officials are currently doing test runs.
The renewable natural gas project at the Larson Dairy Farm is expected to be completed before the end of the year.
Follow us on social: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram