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With the rising costs of energy, finding better, more efficient energy sources has become a priority for many, and that was the case at the second annual Montgomery County Farm Bureau Rural Energy Summit held at Sinclair Community College in Dayton March 15.

Whether it’s ethanol, biomass or wind energy, it seems everyone is looking for a less expensive source of energy, but Richard Hiatt, president of the National Food and Energy Council, said there are many things farmers can do every day to save on their energy bills. Hiatt said, according to USDA, farmers spent $3.8 billion on electricity, and Ohio farmers spent $53.7 million in 2002. He said the major electricity end-uses on farms are lighting, materials handling and heating, cooling and ventilation. He suggested farmers audit their operation’s energy needs and find where conservation methods can be used.

"Because many large operations are charged a demand fee and energy is a nonstorable commodity, farmers should make sure they understand their bill and manage when and how they use energy," Hiatt said. "Running equipment at the same time raises demand. So if there is a way to avoid running the milk house and grain dryer at the same time, that is something farmers should strive for."

Hiatt said the key factors in knowing how to manage energy efficiently is knowing your operation’s hours of run time per year and the size of the load (watts or horsepower) used. He also said that making minor changes will make a big difference. For instance, changing light bulbs from incandescent to the more efficient fluorescent bulbs will give you more light for your buck.

Many farmers are looking for ways to become energy producers, but Hiatt cautioned there is little or no opportunity for most farmers because most farms would have to pay out more money to become energy producers than they would end up saving. He said to let economics rule the decision, and he encouraged farmers to talk to their utility companies early and often to find the best benefit for them.

Mike Salva, of the Ohio Department of Development’s Office of Energy Efficiency, talked about many energy technologies under development. He said the future lies in industrial best practices, biomass energy programs and on-site generation. He said Ohio is lucky in that there are so many processing plants in the state that can produce biomass resources such as food and beverage processing waste, livestock waste and primary and secondary wood processing wastes. He said the promise of six ethanol plants in Ohio will be a huge boost to the energy needs of farmers. "Ohio uses 500 million gallons of ethanol a year, all of which are imported. When all six plants are up and running, Ohio will produce 200 million gallons a year," Salva said.

Dale Arnold, OFBF’s director of energy services, said the second annual Rural Energy Summit brought many of the industries’ leaders together to share ideas, but it also allowed farmers to learn about energy programs and share their experiences.

"We had a great farmer turnout this year, and that is so important to our mission of finding better energy sources," Arnold said. "The speakers for the summit presented so many promising ideas, and the future of energy sources in Ohio becomes more tangible every day."

CAPTION: Richard Hiatt of the National Food and Energy Council explains the three major end-uses of energy for farmers at the Rural Energy Summit.