36 



hope this provides the information you needed. Please feel free to call me if you 

 have any additional questions. 

 Best regards, 



Alan N. Tompkins, 

 Program Manager, Marine Biomass Program. 

 Attachment. 



Attachment A to Letter to Dr. Ab Flowers 



NO. GE-8 10-554 



Approval for deployment of the Marine Biomass Program's Test Farm off of 

 Laguna Beach, California was granted by two Federal agencies with jurisdiction as 

 follows: 



1. U.S. Corps of Engineers granted approval for the placement of this structure 

 under authority granted to them under Section 10 of the Rivers & Harbors Act 

 dated March 10, 1899, 33 U.S.C. 403 stipulating performance of work in or affecting 

 navigable waters of the U.S. 



2. Permit from the U.S. Coast Guard was required identifying the Test Farm as a 

 private aid to navigation. This permit was issued after the U.S. Coast Guard's 

 approval of appropriate drawings and specifications specifying necessary markings, 

 navigational lights, and hazard warning systems. 



Mr. FoRSYTHE. I see another 200 mile zone for kelp beds. 



Mr. Chairman, I think I should desist. I appreciate the opportu- 

 nity. Thank you very much. 



Mr. Studds. Mr. Emery. 



Mr. Emery. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 



I wonder if you could tell us a little bit about the process by 

 which the gas can be manufactured from kelp? There are three 

 processes that I am aware of that are generally used to producing 

 energy from biomass. One is pyrolysis, the other being fermenta- 

 tion process, and the third anaerobic digestion. 



Can you tell me a little bit about the feasibility of each of those 

 methods and why you selected the one that you selected? 



Dr. Flowers. We selected anaerobic digestion as being by far the 

 best process for the conversion of the kelp to SNG because, No. 1, 

 anaerobic digestion allows a liquid base, if you will, as it turns out, 

 all we have to do to the raw kelp is just grind it and put it in the 

 digestor. The saltwater in the kelp is just about the right amount 

 of water that we need in a digestor in operation so we do not have 

 to add additional water. Fresh water is not required. The bacteria 

 that we have modified from the sewage and developed from marine 

 sources thrive in the saltwater environment so it is just really a 

 natural for that purpose. 



Mr. Emery. What is the byproduct, what is left over after the 

 digestion process? Is it waste material, or something that could be 

 used as fertilizer, in addition to any other traits? 



Dr. Flowers. There are both liquid and solid effluents from the 

 digestion process. Both of these could be processed, to feeds and 

 fertilizers, and to food supplements, or it could be returned back to 

 the farm, to save those nitrates and nitrites for additional fertiliza- 

 tion on the farm, and thereby reducing any upwelling require- 

 ments that we have in the deep ocean waters. 



Mr. Emery. I asked the question because I wonder if we are 

 going to get into a disposal problem for the material which remains 

 after this process. Many, many other processes that we are familiar 

 with have useful b5T)roducts, but if it is a system that is going to 

 require ocean dumping, or some other disposal mechanism, that is 

 going to cause a problem, we ought to be aware of it. Do you see 

 any problem of it being marketed as a feed, or as a fertilizer of 



