US Gain reaches completion on Wisconsin on-farm RNG facility

US Gain has completed a renewable natural gas (RNG) project in Wisconsin, which generates biogas from dairy farming waste, in collaboration with gas clean-up equipment company Nacelle Solutions. The project collects 99% of the methane element of the biogas for use as fuel or energy to meet a growing demand for RNG from Midwest farmers, many of whom already run their own biodigesters. The project is at the Clover Hill Dairy, run by the Bonlender family, and Jon Bonlender said the RNG system would offer environmental and financial benefits by cleaning the air and providing a new income stream.

U.S. Gain completes RNG project at Wisconsin dairy

U.S. Gain has completed a renewable natural gas (RNG) facility at Clover Hill Dairy in Campbellsport, Wisconsin.



The new gas processing plant uses anaerobic digestion to generate biogas from dairy waste. Once extracted, the non-methane components of the biogas are removed so the methane can be used as a fuel or energy source. The Clover Hill project improves access to RNG for the transportation and thermal energy sectors and by capturing 99% of methane during production, the local air quality will be "significantly improved".



U.S. Gain has partnered with multiple farming operations in the Midwest to meet the growing demand for RNG. The company's director of RNG Business Development, Bryan Nudelbacher, said: "Many of the large farms already have digesters and we work with them to offtake and distribute the RNG produced. But the Clover Hill project goes one step beyond that. Now, we're also actively leading the development of gas processing facilities and coordinating transportation of pipeline-grade gas to injection sites, drawing on skill-sets from industry experts, as appropriate."



Nacelle Solutions, an industry leader in developing gas clean-up equipment designed for the RNG sector, supported U.S. Gain in the Clover Hill Dairy project. "Nacelle has enjoyed working with U.S. Gain and the Bonlenders on the Clover Hill project from its infancy to most recently the first scale of RNG," said Nacelle's co-founder Gov Graney.



"We are pleased to see the plant up and running on time and on budget, as well as performing the way we designed it. We look forward to the operations phase of the project where will be safely and continuously producing RNG for U.S. Gain."



The Bonlender Family of Clover Hill Dairy said they'd had a methane digester since 2007 and for the past 13 years, it has produced higher-quality manure, electrical production and a renewable bedding source for its animals. Joe Bonlender said: "By replacing our generators with the RNG system, our farm will see many added environmental benefits such as less noise pollution (from generators), cleaner air and less odour.



"Our business will also see an added income stream. Our family feels this partnership with U.S. Gain is a great opportunity for our farm and our greater community."



Nudelbacher added: "As for the RNG produced, it's of value to fleets on the West Coast, particularly southern California where air quality is a tremendous concern. Fleets that use RNG within their operations are able to claim transportation-emission reductions, strengthening sustainability performance, and also share in the Low Carbon Fuel Standard environmental credit value."