US supermajor Chevron has recently been promoting its efforts to work with industry partners—like dairy farmers—to treat methane from cow waste to make renewable natural gas (RNG).
“A lot of people don’t realize that dairy farms are very carbon intensive,” said Chicovia Scott, a self-proclaimed nerd and Chevron’s renewable natural gas commercial manager in a post on the US company’s website. “That uncaptured methane gas from cow manure is more than 25 times as potent at capturing heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide (CO2).”
By partnering with Chevron to capture methane and treat it to make RNG, farmers can reduce the carbon intensity of their operations. “We partner with folks like CalBio; they understand how dairy farms work,” Chicovia said. “We have the capital and commercial acumen…it feels like a perfect marriage.”
Once the waste has been treated to remove contaminants, RNG is virtually indistinguishable from traditional natural gas.
In addition to fueling heavy-duty vehicles, it can also be used for electricity generation, bioplastics and thermal functions like heating and cooking.
Source: Chevron