Brubaker Farms Family Dairy Farm Methane Project

Project Type

Farm Methane - Anaerobic Digester

Project Location

Mt. Joy, Pennsylvania, USA

Project Overview/Description

Brubaker Farms, located in Mt. Joy, PA, is a third generation family dairy farm.  It is owned and operated by the Brubaker Family, who began the farm in 1929.  The farm currently has about 725 dairy cows, and also raises poultry and crops, including corn, rye, alfalfa, barley and soybeans on their 1,500 acres of land.  The Brubaker family has a history of environmental stewardship in their farming efforts, and began a process of applying for a variety of grants in 2005 from the State of Pennsylvania and the US Department of Agriculture in order to help fund the construction of an anaerobic digester.  Teaming up with NativeEnergy, who contributed over 10% to the total project costs by bringing upfront funding to purchase the RECs and other carbon offsets associated with the operation of the digester, the Brubaker Farm’s digester began operating in December 2007, and delivers power to the 225 kW Guascor reciprocating engine/generator connected to the local power grid.  The methane digester avoids emissions of carbon dioxide and methane in three ways:

1. It  replaces local grid based electricity with renewable energy;
2. It eliminates the burning of fuel (propane and oil) used to heat and power the farm;
3. It avoids methane emissions from manure that otherwise would have been stored in a lagoon by “digesting” the slurry to generate electricity

The Brubaker family has been recognized by a variety of agricultural and environmental organizations for their work, and frequently sponsors local events that promote environmental efforts at the farm, and also holds educational tours for local community members.

Project Participants

The project is a collaborative effort between the Brubaker Family, the US Department of Agriculture, and NativeEnergy.

Offset Type

Forward Stream offsets over 20 years.

Verification/Monitoring

Estimation and monitoring methodology was developed with the Climate Neutral Network and is available at www.nativeenergy.com.  Annual performance data is monitored.

Additionality

The project demonstrates financial additionality according to IPCC definitions since the revenues from the offset/REC purchases contribute a critical portion of the overall project funding. Technical additionality is demonstrated since the technology is not considered business as usual on U.S. dairy farms and requires developing special technical skills.

Sustainable Development Benefits

Reduced operation costs allow the family farm to afford to continue to farm and keep open space.  The methane digester produces enough clean and renewable energy to power most operations at the farm and excess heat from the engine is used to heat farm buildings, reducing the amount of propane needed.  Improved manure management reduces farm runoffs. The digester has also significantly reduced the manure odor and pathogens, and is creating safer organic fertilizer to apply to the fields and bedding material for the cows in place of purchasing wood shavings.