Cosmo dog park in Gilbert, Arizona is the playground for around 200 dogs every single day. That’s a lot of dog excrement that probably ends
up in landfills producing a lot of methane that wafts off and probably causes a host of issues.

However, as I learned from the stunning piece of cinema Mad Max III: Return to Thunderdome, Methane can be used as a source of energy. It is combustable.
council proposed the $25k project and had students at Arizona State University design the device to turn dog poop into energy to power a street lamp.

An article from IBTimes explains that “Anaerobic digestion occurs when there is a lack of oxygen. As part of that process, microbes break down carbohydrates, fats and proteins present in dog feces and turn them into methane and carbon dioxide, which is then burned to generate light or electricity.”

One of the big problems that faced is that this digestion does not occur above 100 degrees. Anybody who has been to Arizona knows that 100 degrees plus is quite normal in summer. The clever students came up with the idea of putting the machine underground where the temperature is cooler and constant. It also keeps the smelly fuel out of reach of walkers nostrils!

I love this project idea and hope it becomes standard across all dog parks and maybe even for other uses.

source: therandomforest