City Considering a Bizarre Plan to Generate Power from Dog Poop

The city ponders a plan to make power from puppy poop
The city ponders a plan to make power from puppy poop
Photo: The Economist

New York City has over 600,000 dogs, one for every 14 residents. These dogs generate over 100,000 tons of poop per year, most of which hits landfils where its natural methane release gets wasted.

A recent article in The Economist discusses a new business and dog waste proposal from Ron Gonen, the City’s former recycling tsar called "Sparky Power."

The idea is to fit parks with small anaerobic digesters. Dog owners would place their mongrels’ mounds into the machine, which then converts poo to gas for powering lamps and other park equipment. A year-long pilot would introduce digesters in three parks at a cost of around $100,000. The parks department is pondering the proposal.

Read through the full article to learn more.

Matt Coneybeare

Matt Coneybeare

Editor in Chief

Matt enjoys exploring the City's with his partner and son. He is an avid marathon runner, and spends most of his time eating, running, and working on cool stuff.

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