Investing in Renewable Energy

Project: Converting Agricultural Waste to Energy with Plasma Melting Technology Research and Development
Recipient:  WastenotIOWA
                   P.O. Box 11413
                   2410 Grand Ave. SE
                   Cedar Rapids, IA 52410
Amount Requested: $2,000,000
Funds will be used to invest in a plasma melting technology research and development project that will test disposal of various streams of agricultural waste without producing a negative environmental impact and identify high-energy agricultural waste streams that would best be converted into high quality, alternative energy for local use. Such waste streams would include green agriculture waste, solid waste, agricultural/industrial chemicals, animal byproducts, and agricultural debris. In order to address growing environmental challenges with landfills and energy challenges in general, this project is pursuing sustainable means of managing waste and converting to energy sources.

Project: Gearbox Test Facility and Wind Energy Research Center
Recipient:  Iowa Department of Economic Development
                   200 E. Grand   
                   Des Moines, IA 50309
Amount Requested: $15,000,000
Funds will be used to design, develop, construct, commission, and operate an accredited facility to conduct research, testing, and analysis of large wind turbine drivetrain systems. To greatly increase the amount of wind energy produced in the US, deployment of large, utility-scale wind turbines will be necessary to achieve this goal. This center will be capable of testing wind turbine drivetrains on the scale of 5 to 15 MW while working with government, industry, and academia to provide unique testing data and analysis.

Project: Iowa Center of Excellence in Wind Turbine Reliability and Manufacturing
Recipient:  University of Iowa
                   105 Jessup Hall
                   Iowa City, IA 52242
Amount Requested: $1,500,000
In order to significantly increase the amount of wind energy produced in the US, we will need to reduce the capital cost of large turbines and significantly increasing turbine reliability to reduce operational cost. Funds will be used to combine the research talents at the University of Iowa with industry expertise in turbine and turbine component manufacturing to address improvements in turbine reliability and manufacturability. This center would also be part of a larger initiative to partner with the National Wind Resource Center at Texas Tech University. Texas and Iowa together contribute over 30% of the total wind generation in the U.S., and are leaders in attracting wind energy manufacturers.

Project: Iowa Integral Farms
Recipient:    The Smarter Earth Institute
                   302 West Washington, Suite D
                   Fairfield, Iowa, 52556
Amount Requested: $750,000
Funds will be used to begin an Integral Farm pilot project and to collect financial, environmental, energy, and performance data of the pilot project. The Integral Farms pilot project will be an environment-neutral, high-efficiency farming operation that produces livestock, fish, and aquaculture along with organic produce and field crops. The farm will recycle water used in its operation, capture methane, and generate its own power and organic fertilizer for field crops. The purpose of an Integral Farm is to use the outputs, including waste products, of one process in such a way that they become inputs, including energy production, fertilizer and food supply for the other processes. The processes are intended to operate in balance to optimize the income and efficiency of the farm. This project will develop data necessary to show the benefits of an Integral Farm which include reduced energy use, reduced environmental footprint and chemical or artificial inputs, organic locally produced products, and sustainability of farming and livestock practices.