California regulates cow farts

a reply to: VigiliaProcuratio

That is so funny, interestingly that is why such a bill to control natural gas emissions is moronic and stupid.

Heck thankfully I do not eat dairy products at all.

a reply to: marg6043

I'm vegetarian but I still use general dairy products. This scares me, cow milk is over-consumed anyway and I don't believe it is good for us at all in excess, so to tamper with the way they metabolise grass and pass the waste is surely extremely dangerous. I mean, where does gas come from in the gut? Some of it will be the result of typical digestion, but some of it will also be excreted from bacteria (this is purely a guess). Suffice to say, this could affect what bacteria is present in the gut and how it is involved with digestion - if some bacteria either die off or proliferate then it opens up the door to them either becoming toxic or bad bacteria will become prevalent, either way potentially causing disease. If so then we could be compromised as a result. This is worse than trying to remove hormones from plants, and now that I think about it the two together could lead us to extinction.

a reply to: VigiliaProcuratio

I will not worry too much, this news of what California government is doing is one of those things that will die down eventually and will be thrown in the trash.

The man is an idiot and those that support such bill are idiots too.

I don't consume dairy because I get stuffy when I do.

I also stop eating meat, only fish and lots of other sources of plant protein, the reason for that is health related, I was having a lot of pain in my joins, been tested for everything I mean from arthritis to lupus you named, I am negative for inflammation markers, so I decided to stop meat and see if I feel better, so far soo good.

a reply to: marg6043

If it doesn't get passed then that would be great, but for it to even be discussed is a concern. You couldn't put it past companies like Monsato to just go ahead with this sort of thing regardless of legislation.

The concept does worry me, though. Now that you mention plant protein, that's precisely where my concern is. Cattle and tuberculosis is a very important subject, even more so when we consider the iron and calcium content in grass. Tuberculosis, iron and calcium I believe are all very relevant to one another (please don't get me started on this, I'll just ramble) - so if that's true then tampering with the way cattle metabolise grass could have serious consequences in respect of proliferating that bacterium. For all I know the opposite could be true, but either way it would require many years of experiments in order to suitably satisfy the scientific community that it would not open up avenues for dangerous bacteria to enter into the food chain.

a reply to: VigiliaProcuratio

I agree, Monsanto, is a danger to our ecosystem.

Cows have been here for around 10,000 years. 10,000 years worth of cow farts, and planet Earth is just fine.

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They'll figure it out. More panic, fear, and media scare tactics to keep you clicking. I'm from this area and work in agriculture. Seriously, don't worry about it.

originally posted by: ketsuko
The nation's leading agricultural state is now regulating cow farts targeting methane.

...California may think it's a good idea to kill of their dairy industry

And weaning Murrikkka off fossil fuels will kill the auto industry?
Hardly, but 'conservatism' is 'evil' when it is conserving a bad/dysfunctional system!
Oh, no, some are valuing the environment over profits!
Ohh noooooo......

It might hurt at first, but technology evolves also.

Activated charcoal cow diapers and belch curtains!
See all the new jobs created?

The whole carbon tax /market scheme is gross. It makes me want to destroy....everything.

a reply to: ketsuko

I never, ever feel that violence is the answer to anything. But I swear if California was a person I would beat the living daylights in hopes that their near death experience would wake them up from their lunacy.

Want to make a real impact on the climate? Take a look at big business. Not cows, not your car driver, but those who own huge industrial tankers and the likes. But nah, that'd be too hard so lets stick it to the every day man!

So, here's what's really going on. From OP "State regulators want more farmers to reduce emissions with methane digesters, which capture methane from manure in large storage tanks and convert the gas into electricity."

The use of the word "farts" is journalistic titillation, but we're really talking about using the methane from a lagoon to make energy for use on the farm and also potential sale back on an energy grid. Nice to be energy independent.

How the methane digester works Twice a day, the barns are flushed clean with recycled water, including water that has been recycled from the creamery. Manure from the barn is also scraped by tractor into a holding pond. From there, it goes through a separator, which separates solids from liquids. The solids are composted and the liquids are piped into a second pond that is covered with an enormous tarp. Under the tarp, the liquid manure is transformed by bacteria, through the process of anaerobic digestion. The result of this sustainable practice is renewable energy in the form of methane gas, carbon dioxide and a small amount of hydrogen sulfite.

The tarp that covers the pond captures the gas. It is then pumped to a combustion engine where it fuels a generator and creates electricity. The heat created in the process is used to heat water for the dairy. This 180-degree Fahrenheit water is used to clean barns.

from Straus Dairy




It's already being done.

[T]wo dairy digester projects under control of the American Biogas Energy Co., which is part of CalBio, are moving forward and have recently received grant funding: Lakeview Farms Dairy, Bakersfield and West Star North Dairies, Buttonwillow. Lakeview Farms Dairy received $4 million to install and demonstrate a covered lagoon digester that converts dairy manure into biogas to generate renewable electricity and to prepare a 1-MW generator platform capable of being expanded by using biogas from neighboring dairies. This would be the state’s first genuine dairy cluster, what many believe is a long time coming. Another project in that cluster is Carlos Echeverria & Sons as well as CalBio’s existing 2 -W Old River project. “What’s unique and important about Lakeview is that we’re planning to build a 1-MW dairy digester, but the platform for that will be designed to add a second or third MW from neighboring dairies if and when we build dairy digesters in those,” Black says. “We’re trying to develop economies of scale both in capital expenses and in ongoing operations and management expenses. We’re delighted to have the large Old River project up and running, and to have received funding for two new projects in this cluster.”

And here's why we do it

Regulations in California are tougher than in other states because of its unique issues: nonattainment zones from dense human populations and associated vehicle and power plant emissions along the coastal regions, juxtaposed with nonattainment zones from multiple sources, including the dense dairy population in the Central Valley.

source
Lots of people, cars, and cows.

..... although we're talking cows (and hogs) here, if you can ever find Humboldt Fog (CA) goat milk cheese, buy it. And I just bought some Wisconsin blue cheese that promises to be spectacular. American made cheese is, well, the best.

They won't be the leading agricultural state for much longer with policies like this.

Larger cattle breeders will move operations to states without such ridiculous taxes, and the smaller ones will struggle under the costs and eventually close down.

If they really care about climate change then they should start a program to transition from coal and other fossil fuels in favour of nuclear power and other clean energy sources. Ideally this should be done globally, but that lobby is a strong one.

a reply to: ketsuko

WOW
These people are idiots.

Cattle and other farm animals are major sources of methane, a greenhouse gas many times more potent than carbon dioxide as a heat-trapping gas. Methane is released when they belch, pass gas and make manure.

Yep methane is bad isn't it.......unless you are an industry that HEAVILY donates to the dnc.

www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2016/02/25/california-gas-leak-was-the-worst-man-made-greenhouse-gas-disaster-in-u-s-history-study-s ays/?utm_term=.91882a6f1b41

California gas leak was the worst man-made greenhouse-gas disaster in U.S. history, study says

The Aliso Canyon leak, which was halted only a week ago, illustrates how a single incident can sabotage efforts to reduce emissions of the gases blamed for climate change, the study said. California officials have called for dramatic reductions in carbon pollution for the state’s 39 million people, and offered tax rebates for consumers who buy electric vehicles. Yet the analysis shows that the methane flow from one damaged wellhead more than doubled the amount of methane pollution emitted by all sources across the entire Los Angeles basin.

Yep "THE WORST"
One would think the entire state of california would be up in arms about that leak right? They know who owned the leaking device, they have video evidence, and the perps have admitted the wrongdoing. Oh you didnt hear about that part?
www.nytimes.com...

A California company that operated a natural gas storage system that leaked last year, spewing thousands of tons of methane and other chemicals into the air and forcing the evacuation of more than 8,300 households, reached a $4 million settlement with state prosecutors, officials announced on Tuesday.

$4 mill?
Thats it?
No charges? No jail time?

Yeah those dem green supporters really have your back in cali....as long as your a donor.
You will donate be it in taxes, or cost increases in a gallon of milk,or just a check to them.....some of the most despicable use of federal agencies and federal regulations I have ever seen.
Then they wonder why people are so opposed to a "carbon tax".

a reply to: Ohanka

Decades ago our main utility companies decided to get out of the nuclear energy business. We avoided our own Fukushima by decommissioning the Humboldt Bay plant by Eureka.

And now....

However, PG&E and environmental groups agree that California no longer needs the electricity from Diablo Canyon, given increased energy efficiency in the state and the growing availability and affordability of solar and wind power and other renewable energy.

PG&E President Geisha Williams has said the utility could pivot to wind, solar, biomass, geothermal or hydropower to replace the energy Diablo Canyon currently provides — about 9 percent of the state’s power.

Under the new agreement, PG&E pledges to use renewable energy to produce 55 percent of its electricity by 2031, the utility said.

source

"wind, solar, biomass, geothermal or hydropower".... that's what we've been doing here. It works for us, may not work everywhere, so each state can make its own decisions about its energy needs.

a reply to: shooterbrody

$4 mill? Thats it? No charges? No jail time?

For white collar and corporate crime? Not in America.

State regulations were not up-to-date enough to handle the Oklahoma gas piped to the Los Angeles storage wells, and leaving it up to the corporation to do something was futile.

While it took engineers nearly four months to contain the leak, most agree that the crisis could have been averted easily, were it not for California’s outmoded regulatory approach to underground natural gas storage. Adding insult to injury, eleven months prior to the Aliso Canyon leak, the Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas) seems to have come to the same conclusion. In a report directed to the California Public Utilities Commission in November 2014, SoCalGas acknowledges the dozens of maintenance concerns[vi] in its aging gas storage systems,[vii] ultimately conceding that “without a new inspection plan, SoCalGas . . . could experience major failures and service interruptions from potential hazards that currently remain undetected.”[viii] Yet, despite the precarious state of its storage facilities, at the time it released its report, SoCalGas was in compliance with all California state regulations concerning underground natural gas storage.[ix] That an up-to-code facility could bear responsibility for a methane leak of unprecedented proportions suggests existing regulations warrant review.

source

Future criminal penalty. It would be nice to see someone incarcerated for compromising the public good.

The utility is on notice that it could face a more serious criminal penalty in the future if the same unlawful conduct occurs, according to the District Attorney’s Office, which said the settlement will not interfere with pending civil actions filed by Porter Ranch residents against the company.

source

This is why we need to use buffalo meat. They produce way less methane and actually taste better.

originally posted by: odzeandennz
This is why California needs to secede from the US

This is why many of us in calif want to break up the state into 2 to 6 states.
interactive.nydailynews.com...
fox40.com...
ww2.kqed.org...