In a Disney-esque circle-of-life marriage between high tech and big agriculture, researchers from HP have proposed powering server farms with waste from dairy farms. In a nutshell, methane from bacteria-digested cow manure would be used to generate electricity. About 10,000 cows could supply enough juice (milk?) for a 1MW data center. While co-located power solutions are not new to data centers or industry, the HP proposal is a reminder us that everything has a carbon footprint, and we’ll need an electricity system that’s flexible enough to adapt and incorporate all innovative energy sources, however cheezy, creamy or otherwise appealing.
From the NY Times