Jeff Bingaman United States Senator from New Mexico

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman today announced that the U.S. Department of Energy is releasing funding he secured for a biomass project in Roswell.

Bingaman secured $2.37 million for the Pecos Valley Biomass cooperative in a fiscal year 2009 spending bill.  The project will integrate a cooperative manure management system for the collection, storage, and the bioconversion of cow manure and other agriculture waste products into bio-methane gas. This renewable gas can be utilized through the national natural-gas pipeline system or for transportation bio-fuels. The integrated "bio-refinery" center includes anaerobic digestion and gasification for production of bio-methane and fertilizer granules.

"Biomass is an important source of renewable energy and Roswell's dairy industry makes this an ideal location for this energy project," Bingaman said.