BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity along with their co-sponsors will offer a free one-day workshop aimed at educating Illinois’ livestock producers about methane production and power generation from livestock manure.

The Waste-to-Energy Workshop for the Illinois Livestock Industry is open to any potential user of these technologies as well as anyone involved in the design, financing, operation or regulatory oversight of these facilities.

Workshop topics include: Illinois manure management requirements; the role of anaerobic digestion in reducing air, water and land quality impacts; integrated combined heat and power (CHP) technologies with anaerobic digesters; available digester and CHP technologies; the economic, environmental and financial aspects; case studies of existing installations; and how to obtain additional assistance when evaluating these technologies.

Additionally, the workshop will feature speakers from the USDA Rural Develop-ment, USDA-NRCS, the University of Illi-nois, the Illinois Department of Agricul-ture (IDOA), Midwest CHP Application Center, Ameren, ComEd, Corn Belt Energy Corp. and the Illinois Environ-mental Protection Agency (EPA).

This one-day workshop will be on Wednesday, Aug. 30 in Bloomington at the Illinois Agricultural Assoc. Building and again on Thursday, Aug. 31 in Sterling at the Latin America Social Club. Registration is due by Aug. 25.

After Aug. 25 it is $25 per person to attend.

To register by phone, call Sam Rinaldi at 312-996-2554.

Co-sponsors of the workshop include: the U.S. Department of Energy, the IDOA, the Illinois EPA, the Illinois Farm Bureau, the Illinois Milk Producers Assoc., the Illinois Pork Producers Assoc., Midwest CHP Application Center, the University of Illinois Extension Center and the Illinois Beef Assoc.

This farm news was published in the August 23, 2006 issue of Farm World, serving Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan and Tennessee.