[ Home ] [ Leadership ] [ About Bill ] [ News ] [ Positions ] [ Support Bill ]

Bill Rowell  - Franklin County Vermont - We need effective legislative leadership with a vision for Vermont, leadership capable of recognizing our needs, bringing the system to focus on today's challenges and delivering responsible timely solutions.

 January 18, 2010

American Farm Bureau Meeting

In view of the fact that the American Farm Bureau (AFB) represents a cross section of agriculture in the United States, its voice is something of a barometer for policy decisions at the Congressional level.

The AFB held its annual meeting January 9 – 13 at the Washington State Convention & Trade Center in Seattle, Washington this year. Delegates represented all fifty states before an audience, which exceeded 5,000 attendees.

The diversity of agriculture represented at the meeting and AFB policy on the vast array of topics required a great deal of time, patience and consideration to move forward in the better interest of our country. To read more about the trip click here.

August 20, 2009

Vermont Cow Power Contingent travels to Rimouski, Quebec

The idea of this trip started in the fall of 2008 when Dominic and Najat Dufour traveled from the Gaspe Peninsula Quebec Canada with their 3 year old daughter Leila to visit the CVPS Cow Power™ project at Green Mountain Dairy in Sheldon, Vermont.  After their visit, the Dufours invited Bill Rowell to the city of Rimouski to speak with a group of people interested in championing the idea of developing anaerobic digesters on the smaller farms of their region. The delegation had the endorsement of Vermont's Governor, Lt Governor and Secretary of Agriculture. The Rimouski Quebec group was very interested to learn about how CVPS Cow Power™ works, and the process of bringing together the various groups to facilitate such a project.  To read more about the trip click here.

April 26, 2009

Car dealership enrolls in "Cow Power" program

(NECN: Anya Huneke, St. Albans, VT) - A Vermont car dealership is taking a greener approach to paying its electric bills. The St. Albans dealer is the first in the country to enroll in a program that supports farmers who turn waste into energy. In an industry not generally associated with environmental stewardship, Dan and Adam Luneau say they are seeing a change... Dan Luneau Owner, Handy Toyota "The car industry is headed there." And they want to help lead the way. The father and son team are part owners of Handy Toyota in St. Albans, Vermont. The dealership has just signed on to an energy program that will cost them a bit more - roughly 0/month - but will tax the environment less. Dan "I find that to be a very inexpensive price to pay to be on the cutting edge of the green movement in this country." Handy Toyota is the first auto dealership in the U.S. to enroll in 'Cow Power'- a program created by Central Vermont Public Service in 2004 through which participating farms, with specialized equipment, convert manure into electricity. Green Mountain Dairy Farm in Sheldon is one of them. Bill Rowell Owner, Grn. Mtn. Dairy Farm "In the last 12 months we're produced 1.9 million kilowatt hours of electricity." CVPS customers can choose, as handy Toyota has done, to pay a premium of 4-cents per kilowatt-hour for electricity. That money supports farms contributing to the Cow Power program. Steve Costello CVPS Spokesperson "Large customers like this enrolling will help us assure the farmer that there is demand and that people will pay the premium price." Handy Toyota has a special interest in the program because of its local connections. Four of the six existing Cow Power producers are right here in Franklin County-- the largest dairy-producing county east of the Mississippi." Adam Luneau Handy Toyota "There's not a day that goes by that we don't have a farmer in our showroom." The Luneaus say Toyota has been a leader in developing hybrid technology and feel Cow Power is in line with its mission. For the rest of the year they also plan to put 60-dollars toward the program for every hybrid vehicle they sell. Which Steve Costello of CVPS says will help the utility achieve its goal. Steve "Ultimately we want to get to about 5-percent of our energy load coming from cow manure." CVPS estimates the impact of Handy's involvement in Cow Power will be equivalent to 30-thousand fewer gallons of gasoline burned per year. An example the company hopes others will follow.

~ View at: NECN

March 21, 2009

Dairy Farmers Working Together hosted the Northeast Dairy Summit on March 20, 2009 in Burlington, Vermont.

Thank you to our attendees and everyone whose hard work made the conference a success!

Featured Speakers were Ray Souza, Western, United Dairyman; Chuck Nicholson, Cornell University; John Meyer, Holstein Association; Rob Vandenheuvel, Milk Producers Council; Calvin Covington, Southeast Milk Inc.;
Bob Naerebout and Jim Stewart, Idaho Dairymen’s Assoc.
 

DFWT remains committed to providing creative answers in unsettled times.
Contact 802-848-7446 or visit  www.dfwt.org for more information

On Thursday September 18, 2008 local farmer Bill Rowell joined Secretary Roger Albee in Washington D.C. for a day of meetings pertaining to dairy, agriculture, natural resources and the environment. Pictured above, left to right, are Mark Rey - Under Secretary for Natural Resources & Environment, Roger Allbee - Vermont Secretary of Agriculture, Bill Rowell - Vermont Dairy Farmer and Gary Mast- Deputy Under Secretary for Natural Resources & Environment.

Secretary Allbee and Mr. Rowell met for several hours with Deputy Under Secretary Gary Mast and Job Serebrov, Senior Advisor to the Secretary for Natural Resources & Environment and Senior Counselor to the General Counsel, both of these gentlemen had visited the Rowell farm, Green Mountain Dairy in Sheldon Vermont, two months earlier.

The objective of the meeting was to discuss a plan which would recognize the needs of Agriculture and offer better protection of our natural resources and environment, in particular Lake Champlain.

Earlier during breakfast with Mr. Bob Gray, the Northeast Dairy Cooperatives lobbyist in Washington, D.C. they discussed the many variables that either influence or impact milk production and milk marketing.

Cow power takes one Vermont company green
(NECN: St. Albans, Vermont) - Forget oil, one New England manufacturer is turning to cow power to fuel its environmentally friendly factory. NECN's Anya Huneke takes a look at the Vermont Clothing Company and the methane gas that keeps them going. Jay Cummings is convinced his new line of clothing and products will be a big hit. Not necessarily because of style...but more, statement. Jay: "We're reaching a critical mass of the Green movement - it's definitely here to stay." Through his promotional products company in St. Albans, Vermont - 'JC Image' - Cummings has launched the 'Vermont Clothing Company.' The company sells products such as T-shirts, bags, and mugs... all with a theme of environmental consciousness. Jay: "I'm not really in the business of selling T-shirts...I'm in the business of promoting Vermont." JC Image has had a green focus for years, the company reuses boxes, and relies on energy efficient lighting and equipment. But Cummings felt that wasn't quite enough. Jay: "One item that was missing was electricity." As it turned out, that was an easy fix. Through a program called CVPS Cow Power. The Vermont Clothing Company is able to essentially get all its electrical energy from Vermont farms." Steve Costello, CVPS spokesperson: "Cow power is essentially a program to take waste, cow manure, turn it into electricity, and give customers a fully renewable Bill Rowell co-owns one of a half dozen Vermont farms participating in the Cow Power program. Rowell: "If you'd told me when I was boy on a farm in Orleans county, that one day I would run an 8-cylinder engine on methane gas from cow manure producing electricity - I would've thought you were far-fetched." Using manure from a thousand-plus cows, Green Mountain Dairy in Sheldon is able to create methane that in turn fuels a generator and sends electricity to the grid. Bill: "We produce enough power here in a year to power 250-300 average households." The power is sold to customers of Central Vermont Public Service who opt to pay more for renewable energy. For the Vermont Clothing Company, it will be about a thousand dollars more per year. Steve: "We see Vermont Clothing Company as really wearing its environmental ethic on its sleeve, if you will. It's great for us and for them." Jay Cumming agrees, for the environment, for the state, and for his company, it will be money well spent.

 -  http://www.necn.com/Boston/Business/Cow-power-takes-one-Vermont-company-green/1207696339.html

The CVPS Renewable Development Fund awarded grants totaling $666,000 to defray the cost of building farm-based electric generating systems to support the company's Cow Power renewable energy program.

- http://www.rutlandherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060404/NEWS/604040315/1011