Web exclusive posted July 31, 2008 at 1:13 p.m. CST 
 
 While building a 300 kilowatt-hour anaerobic digester on his dairy farm to convert cow manure from 1,200 head of cattle into electricity might benefit Dairyland Power Coop. and its customers, the real benefit for dairy farmer Steven Bach in Dorchester, Wis., is the byproduct produced by the digester.
 
 "With the bedding situation out there-sawdust and shavings are hard to come by-I'm more or less doing it to get the bedding," Bach said.
 
 Because the large solids that are separated out during anaerobic digestion can be dried or composted to be used as bedding for animals, anaerobic digesters are becoming popular among cattle farmers.
 
 "That's what's really driving it now is the bedding source," Bach said. "We're actually buying solids off of another digester to bed my cattle right now. And there are neighbors that want to buy my bedding from me, from my excess, once I get it up and running. It's more the bedding driving it than the power. Hopefully we make some money on the power, too."
 
 Bach's digester is being funded in part through grants and loans provided by the USDA Rural Development's Renewable Energy Systems and Energy Efficiency Improvements Program. Bach Digester LLC will receive $800,000 in loans and grants for the project this year. Bach was awarded an $180,000 grant through the USDA program in 2004 for the digester, but the original digester equipment provider for the project was unable to continue with its commitment at that time. Bach is now going to use a digester manufactured by GHD Inc. and will begin excavation for the facility next week.
 
 Dairyland Power Coop.'s long-term goal is to generate up to 24 megawatts of renewable electricity using anaerobic digesters, which is enough to power approximately 20,000 homes, according to the cooperative's Web site.

Anaerobic digester bedding byproduct is an added benefit

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Anaerobic digester bedding byproduct is an added benefit