Powering cities with green chop

Henry's parents, Jock and Shara Menzies, run Merinos on Coningdale, near Armidale, and his gap year is working with James Enderby, Hexham, UK, who had worked with the Menzies as a jackaroo when they owned a property in the Walcha district.

Jock Menzies said the story of producing electricity from biogas, which in turn is generated from crops and pastures on about 1214 hectares (3000 acres), some owned and mostly leased by Mr Enderby, of such a good, positive news story for farmers across the world.

"James is growing rye corn and rye grass, which is then double chopped by a silage machine and stored in pits before being used in the two bio-digesters he's built," Mr Menzies said.

"He feeds the silage pit (contents) with brewers' grains and other things to create enough for the bugs in the digester to make the biogas."

"The gas is then used to power two huge V12 engines that drive generators to make enough electricity to support 10,000 homes near Newcastle in England.

"Henry's job is to cut the green crop, which is put into the silage pits. When the green crop, the digestate, comes out of the other end of the digester, they spread it with manure spreaders on their land. So they're increasing the carbon in their land as well.

"So it's a fertiliser after the bugs (in the digester) have used it as it still has quite a high level of nutrient in it.

Mr Menzies said the farmer Henry works for also has a branch of their business where they use waste from sewage treatment plants injected deep into the soil to lift nutrient levels.

"There's no livestock; the silage is all double-chopped, making it easier for the bugs to work on.

"There are incredible opportunities around. In this country, it would not be easy to do because you don't have the certainty of the rainfall. You would need to do it under an irrigated system.

"Henry's learning heaps over there."