Cow Power Could Generate Electricity For Millions

Converting livestock manure into a domestic renewable fuel source could generate enough electricity to meet up to three per cent of North America’s entire consumption needs and lead to a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs), according to new research.

The research has implications for all countries with livestock as it is the first attempt to outline a procedure for quantifying the national amount of renewable energy that herds of cattle and other livestock can generate and the concomitant GHG emission reductions.

Livestock manure, left to decompose naturally, emits two particularly potent GHGs — nitrous oxide and methane. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, nitrous oxide warms the atmosphere 310 times more than carbon dioxide, methane does so 21 times more.

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Tags: Animals, Cows, GHG, Greenhouse Gas Emissiions, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Livestock, Methane, Nitrous oxide