By Jess Hallas-Kilcoyne

We are delighted to announce the winners of our fourth annual Readers’ Choice Awards, whose contributions to Canada’s horse community are truly worthy of recognition. Congratulations to our very deserving winners!

The 2013 Readers' Choice Awards winners are (please read more at each link):

Canadian Cowgirls: Promoting Patriotism  
LongRun Thoroughbred Retirement Society: Giving Racehorses a Dignified Retirement    
Jane James: Therapeutic Riding & Para-Equestrian Pioneer  
Walter White: Making Wishes Come True   
Whiz N Tag Chex: Destined for Greatness   
Pico: Celebrating Nearly Two Decades of Loyal Service  

GreenScene Agritek Inc.
Creating an Affordable, Sustainable Solution to the Horse Manure Problem

In 2004, the Canadian government asked soil remediation expert Phil Wilford to help develop a strategy for confronting an outbreak of Avian Influenza in the Fraser Valley of BC. He recalls that, “At one of the meetings, somebody said: ‘If you want to look at something that’s a real problem, look at horse manure because we have no way of getting rid of it and we can’t find quality bedding.’”

So Wilford started looking at potential solutions to the problems of increasingly expensive waste disposal and a shortage of fresh bedding material which are affecting the horse community on a global scale. His solution: a revolutionary new technology that recycles horse manure and used bedding (MUB), converting it into clean, dry, odorless, pathogen-free bedding. And so, in 2007, Wilford founded GreenScene Agritek Inc.

Basically, the GreenScene manure recycling system consists of shredding, drying, reheating, and filtering MUB to create clean wood fibre material. According to Wilford, the drying and reheating process not only reduces the moisture content of the MUB from fifty percent to about six percent, but also removes all mold spores, pathogens, and other harmful contaminants. Then, the MUB is filtered, separating the organic fines (manure) from the wood material.

The end result is clean, loose wood fibre that resembles sawdust. This can be used in the stalls as is, or compressed into wood bedding pellets. Best of all, tests have proven that the end product can be recycled and reused at least 35 times, making GreenScene technology one of the most economical and eco-friendly options available.

In 2008, GreenScene’s pilot plant was launched at Crescent Stables in Ladner, BC. The plant proved to be extremely successful, and patents for the new technology were filed in 2009 and approved in February 2012.

The latest version of the GreenScene plant is the GSA E-Series EP10 which has the capacity to recycle ten tonnes of MUB into clean material per hour. The plant is run on three phase electricity that can come from the power grid or from a natural gas or propane generator, making it completely carbon neutral. Additionally, the GSA E-Series EP10 waste by-products (organic fines and reclaimed wood pellets) can be converted to biofuel and used to help fuel the plant itself, or as a heat source for large facilities such as greenhouses, hospitals, and schools.

Not surprisingly, Wilford reports that since the GSA E-Series EP10 became commercially available there’s been a flurry of interest from around the world. But, he continues, before GreenScene Agritek expands to meet international requests, he wants to share his revolutionary technology with horse owners closer to home, by establishing a couple of plants in BC. “We want to make sure that we are looking out for the local BC community.”

To learn more about GreenScene Agritek, visit www.greensceneagritek.com.

Main Article Photo courtesy of GreenScene Agritek