LANSING – The number of agricultural renaissance zones in Michigan would be increased by five to 18, under a bill that won unanimous approval of the Senate Agriculture Committee on Thursday. The zones would provide special tax breaks for operations of facilities creating ethanol from woody waste.

The bill (SB 1122 ) was made more flexible by referring to biofuels in general rather than ethanol, so breaks could also be offered to diesel produced from organic products.

Its provisions are directed to cellulosic ethanol, which Jim McBryde of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation said is an area in which Michigan will soon play a leading role. A May announcement is expected for construction to begin on the first commercial production of ethanol from woody biomass.

McBryde said another benefit of the technology is that it does not pose a choice between food and fuel as corn-based ethanol does.

ANIMALS-TO-METHANE: The committee also approved a bill which proponents say offers a promising solution to disposal of dead livestock, particularly on large animal farms, and cut down on pollution and nuisance problems the carcasses pose.

The House-passed bill (HB 4905 ) allows use of anaerobic digesters, which use microorganisms to decompose animal dead carcasses and other animal organic material and captures the methane waste.

Rep. Arlan Meekhof (R-Olive Twp.), the bill sponsor, said pollution runoff and problems from inappropriate disposal of dead animals has been a growing problem. Noting the equipment is expensive to install, he said, “This will help dramatically.”

The Sierra Club, which has raised several issues over the years related to concentrated animal feeding operations, is neutral on the bill, as Gail Miller said it is unable to find good research on the use of digesters. “We’re interested about the science of the how and why of animals in digesters and the impact that could have on water quality,” she said.

Kevin Kirk of the Department of Agriculture’s animal industry division called the concept excellent. “We need to have additional methods to remove animals and not put them in landfills,” he said. “And if we can produce energy, we need to do that if at all possible.”

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