In recent decades, digesters that convert cow manure and other organic waste into biomethane to create electricity or to fuel vehicles have spread nationally, and the number is expected to grow.
Cows stand in a corral at a Pixley, Calif., dairy farm on Monday, May 20, 2024. In recent decades, digesters that convert cow manure and other organic waste into biogas to create electricity or to fuel vehicles have spread nationally, and the number is expected to grow.
Beverly Whitfield, who says pollution from dairies creates unhealthy air in her community, stands for a portrait in her kitchen on Monday, May 20, 2024, in Pixley, Calif. She believes her allergies, her adult son's asthma and others' breathing issues are linked to pollution from nearby dairies. Home to about 1.7 million cows, California is the country’s leading dairy producer and a large contributor of methane.
Environmental justice organizations say mostly low-income, Latino communities are dealing with pollution from nearby digesters, and they want California to stop providing financial incentives for more. Critics also say state policies favor industrial dairies, entrenching unsustainable animal agriculture.
“This technology reduces odors and some local air pollutants,” said Sam Wade, director of public policy for the Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas. “At the same time, it reduces greenhouse gas emissions.”“You don’t want the doors open because you’re afraid of all the smells,” said Whitfield, whose family left doors open when they moved to Pixley in the 1970s. “Everything’s changed now with the dairies.
“Having a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions is good, but you also want to think about the human health impact,” said lead author Michael A. Holly, an associate professor at the Green Bay campus. Maria Arevalo, a 74-year-old activist and former farmworker, believes her asthma and sleep apnea are linked to pollution from dairies near her home in Pixley. She sleeps with a machine to help her breathe. So do her son, 34, and grandson, 11.
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