The power of poop

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America's dogs and cats produce nearly 10 million tons of waste a year. In San Francisco, animal feces makes up nearly 4 percent of the city's waste?almost as much as disposable diapers. Yet one animal's waste is another animal's treasure.

America's dogs and cats produce nearly 10 million tons of waste a year. In San Francisco, animal feces makes up nearly 4 percent of the city's waste—almost as much as disposable diapers. Yet one animal's waste is another animal's treasure.

The city is the first in the United States to consider converting Rover's droppings into methane, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. The fuel created in the process could then be used to power anything that uses natural gas.

Over the next few months, the city will place biodegradable bags and waste carts in Duboce Park, one of the city's busiest, to collect feces for a test run in a methane digester. In about two weeks, the digester turns poop into power.

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