Abstract
Various government incentives support the adoption of anaerobic digester systems to manage farm waste and serve as a source of renewable energy in the United States. We examine the effectiveness of US state-level incentives promoting the adoption of anaerobic digester systems. We find that performance-based incentives and adoption of renewable portfolio standards best promote anaerobic digester system adoption.
Highlights
Manure management is a contentious modern issue
Net metering and renewable portfolio standards (RPS) are implemented by utilities; tax credits originate from the federal IRS or state revenue department; and performance-based incentives are offered by utilities or local community choice aggregators
We find that the impacts of state financial and regulatory incentives on the adoption rate of anaerobic digester (AD) systems differ
Summary
Manure management is a contentious modern issue. As livestock production has become more concentrated, growers have encountered manure utilization problems when there is insufficient adjacent cropland available to recycle their manure as crop fertilizer [1]. The three policies include providing upfront subsidies (grants) for construction of the AD system, allowing AD farms to obtain Renewable Energy Certificates and sell them on the market, and paying AD farms for reducing GHG emissions through the carbon offset market They found that providing construction-cost subsidies generated the highest rate of AD adoption and the greatest amount of electricity, especially from smaller adopters. Net metering and RPS are implemented by utilities; tax credits originate from the federal IRS or state revenue department; and performance-based incentives are offered by utilities or local community choice aggregators These aggregators are essentially aggregate buyers of electricity managing several counties who are able to provide these incentives due to state-level legislation supporting renewable energy. Further information on these financial and regulatory incentives pertaining to AD systems can be found in the DSIRE database
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
