The Shikaoi Hydrogen Farm in Hokkaido, Japan, is making hydrogen out of cow manure. It hopes to take something that can harm the environment and turn it into something useful, effectively creating a circular economy.
According to the BBC, the island produces about 20 million tonnes of cow manure annually. If not handled correctly, it can release a potent gas called methane into the atmosphere, which heats up the planet. It can also affect the water quality in the area.
While electric vehicles are becoming more popular, farm vehicles are hard to electrify because they are so big. Hydrogen is being used to power these vehicles.
"This project to produce hydrogen from livestock manure originated in Japan and is unique to this place," Maiko Abe of Air Water, one of the companies involved in the project, said.
Japan's Ministry of the Environment launched the project in 2015. "The cow excrement and urine is collected from local dairy farms before being fed into an anaerobic digester at a central facility," the BBC noted.
The bacteria breaks it down and turns it into biogas. That biogas is then turned into hydrogen. The plant creates 18,500 gallons of hydrogen and fills about 28 vehicles daily.
"The hydrogen-powered vehicles are used around the farms' sites, reducing the emissions that would otherwise be created by using other fuel sources," the BBC said.
Hydrogen truck adoption is increasing, and while cow manure can't meet all the hydrogen demand in Japan, it can significantly contribute to the supply while creating a circular economy.
According to the World Health Organization, ambient outdoor air pollution and household air pollution together contribute to 7 million premature deaths each year. Finding a valuable purpose for livestock manure will cut down on that pollution and create a more environmentally friendly way to power farm vehicles.
Dickinson's College Farm in Pennsylvania is also experimenting with using cow manure as an energy source. It's using the energy to power its own facilities.
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Definitely 👍 Hydrogen does come with complications, such as the amount of energy it takes to store it. However, Abe said with the potential of renewable energy on the island, the project could switch over to those sources.
Since hydrogen prices are higher than those of gasoline, the plant offers subsidies to encourage hydrogen adoption.
"Since hydrogen vehicles are not yet widespread, we're keeping our filling capacity low to manage initial investment," Abe said. "As adoption increases, we'll expand supply."
Exploring climate topics such as how cow manure pollutes the planet is crucial to finding solutions.
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