Jim Muir answered questions from State Senator Ted Kennedy Jr. about the potential
for “Cow Power” in Connecticut at the State Environment Committee Hearing on 03/13/2017
After traveling internationally to promote American biogas technology, Jim Muir realized an excellent market might be in his “own back yard”, southern New England. But unlike Pennsylvania, New York and Vermont, Connecticut had no modern digesters, so education was needed.
Muir met with local farmers and assisted the Connecticut Farm Energy Program with their “Agricultural Anaerobic Digester Road Map”. Later he was invited by State Senator Ted Kennedy Jr. to answer questions in front of the State Environmental Committee (excerpt from transcript).
As the head of Connecticut’s Department of the Environment, Kennedy agreed that a program like the successful “Cow Power” program in Vermont, might be replicated in one of America’s wealthiest and environmentally conscious states. Two digesters Muir sold on behalf of his California client, RCM Digesters were developed and launched in Western Massachusetts. Later, two were launched in Connecticut, one of which was Connecticut’s first modern farm digester. Development was handled by a company introduced to the farm by Muir. The two Connecticut projects benefitted from incentives initiated by Kennedy,
Meeting on fields being used by one of Connecticut’s largest farms, Fairvue, owned by the Millers (right) of Woodstock. Congressman Joe Courtney is second from left.
Trucks at Graywall farm in Lebanon, CT. “The Farmer’s Cow” is an association of six eastern Connecticut farms that distributes dairy products under its brand name. Future digester owners are members of this group.