Saturday, February 17, 2007 Livestock growers urged to use biogas technology By Ulysses E. Israel
The Department of Agriculture (DA) is exhorting livestock growers to utilize the biogas technology in their operations not only because it is environment friendly, but also because of its economic benefits.
Julie Rubio, regional biogas program coordinator of DA-Zamboanga Peninsula, told livestock growers Friday that one of the serious problems in hog raising is the improper disposal of animal wastes.
"In most farms, animal manure flows and drains freely to open fields, creeks and rivers causing pollution to both air and water. To correct this practice, biogas technology is being promoted which is found to be economically profitable and contribute towards environment protection," she said during her lecture about biogas during the observance of the Livestock and Poultry Week from February 12-16.
Biogas is a flammable gas produced by bacteria when organic materials such as animal manure, human excreta and some agricultural and industrial wastes are fermented in a certain range of temperatures, moisture contents and acidities, under airtight conditions.
Rubio told Sun.Star that the agriculture department has installed about 50 units of biogas structures in the region since 1996.
Last year, the regional office of DA for Zamboanga Peninsula won the third prize in the national level for having installed the third highest number of biogas structures.
She said the economic benefits from biogas technology are: the production of fertilizer and biogas and sanitation. Slurry fertilizer and effluent water come out of the TPED (tubular polythelene disgester). TPED ferments manure to produce gases such as methane, hydrogen sulfide - two highly inflammable gases, which can be used as fuel for cooking.
The manure deposited in TPED minimize fly infestation and eliminate obnoxious odor, she said.
The uses of biogas are numerous, she said. It can be used as fuel to run an engine at two-horse power for one hour. It can be used as fuel for a 500-liter refrigerator for three hours and can be used to generate 125-kilowatt electricity.
She said the construction of TPED would normally cost about P5,000 to P6,000. Another type of biogas structure is the so-called concrete trench, which makes use of sandy and loose soils) at a cost of about P15,000. The concrete type or commercial type will cost up to P30,000 to make.
The agriculture department is extending financial assistance amounting to as much as P20,000 in the construction of biogas structure to qualified beneficiaries.
To avail of the financial assistance, the hog raiser must have 10 heads or more of hogs, she said. The program is being financed under the Zamboanga Integrated Agriculture Development Program (ZIADP).
DA also provides technical assistance to the livestock growers.
