An agricultural energy workshop will be held on Feb. 6 from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Lewis-Arriola Community Center, presented by the Colorado State University, Montezuma and Dolores County Extension and the Four Corners Office of Resource Efficiency (4CORE).
The workshop is a part of a series sponsored by the Center of Agricultural Energy at CSU.
Senior Research Scientist and Manager at CSUs Southwestern Colorado Research Center Abdel Berrada said the workshop is designed to promote renewable energy, and help people in agriculture find areas where improved efficiency could cut operational costs.
It will teach people what renewable energy is and how to make energy more efficient for agricultural professionals as well as others, Berrada said.
Heather Wyatt is a Community Energy Coordinator with 4CORE and says the non profit group strives to be a hub for energy efficiency.
We try to inspire communities to be resource savvy, Wyatt said.
4CORE also performs energy evaluations for homes, pinpointing where there are losses and room for improvement.
There will be speakers throughout the day educating participants on how energy costs can be reduced, managed and improved.
Kirk Jones, head of the CSU Extension solar energy team will discuss collection and application of solar power
Solar energy should be a big deal. Its free energy, said Berrada.
There will be a presentation from Mike Kostrzewa from the U.S. Department of Energy Industrial Assessment Center on the importance of energy audits for ag producers and how they have been used across the state.
Water Resource Engineer and head of Applegate Groups hydropower program Lindsay George of Glenwood Springs will speak about farm scale hydropower generation.
Dove Creeks own John (JP) Funk, of JP&G Engineering Inc. will discuss the potential possibilities of small scale biodiesel reactors for home and farm use.
We tried to find the experts that have the knowledge and experience to pass on to people in the area, Berrada said.
Lunch will be provided by Empire Electric, and 4Core to all participants. A $10 donation per person is encouraged, but not required.
Im really excited about all of this. This information will be relevant to a lot of people, Berrada said.
For more information or for early registration, Contact Abdel Berrada at (970)565-4255, [email protected].
Reach Brandon Mathis at [email protected]
