Special to the Register
RICHMOND —
Eastern Kentucky University and the Madison County Cooperative Extension Service are among the co-sponsors of the 2010 Regional BioEnergy Field Day at the University’s Meadowbrook Farm on Thursday, Sept. 9, from 4 to 8 p.m.
The events will include a brief program beginning at 6:30 that will highlight a funding announcement from Sixth District Congressman Ben Chandler for EKU’s Center for Renewable and Alternative Fuel Technologies (CRAFT).
The Field Day is free and open to the public and includes a complimentary dinner. To register, call 623-4072. Meadowbrook Farm is located near Waco, at 485 Whitt Road just off KY 52.
The event will emphasize energy efficiency, new advancements in the field of renewable energy, and the contributions of the agricultural community to those advancements. Exhibitors from across Kentucky will display information and products for on-farm and in-home best practices and emerging agricultural opportunities to participate in new, sustainable energy industries within Kentucky.
BioEnergy Farm wagon tours will be offered to the public. The tours will feature brief stops where the public will have the opportunity to engage with industry experts on topics pertaining to the potential of native Kentucky grasses as a source for biofuel, the myths of beef cattle production and greenhouse gases, and local weather and climate monitoring and reporting stations. Demonstrations and displays will include waste plastics to biodiesel technologies, a working dairy farm, horticulture programs, food preservation and safety, green cleaning and more.
Renewable fuels made from biological materials such as plants and animal waste have received growing attention as the need for energy diversification increases and issues such as climate change, sustainable growth and energy independence come to the forefront of local, state and national policy. With over half of all new electricity capacity created in the United States in 2009 coming from renewable energy sources, the bioenergy industry is expected to continue its expansion even as other traditional industries struggle in today’s sluggish economy.
The 2010 Regional BioEnergy Field Day is made possible by the combined efforts of the Kentucky Department for Energy Development and Independence, the U.S. Department of Energy, the Governor’s Office of Agricultural Policy, Madison County Cooperative Extension Service and EKU.
To learn more about the 2010 BioEnergy Field Day and for a map to Meadowbrook Farm, visit ces.ca.uky.edu/madison. For more information, call 859- 623-4072.
