Chicken waste for energy becomes hot topic for candidate for governor in Virginia

Virginia's Democratic primary for governor has brought a lot of attention to a unusual topic: chicken waste. Former national Democratic chairman Terry McAuliffe, right, one of three vying for the June 9 nomination, sees energy converted from chicken manure as way to provide "green jobs" while eliminating a major source of pollution for the state's waterways and the Chesapeake Bay.

While candidates have touted several environmental initiatives, "few issues have generated as much publicity as chicken waste, driven in part by McAuliffe's characteristic over-the-top zeal for the subject," writes Sandhya Somashekhar for The Washington Post. McAuliffe has inspected Virginia Tech's prototype machine that converts poultry waste into energy. "He was enthused," said Oren Heatwole, who owns the property where the machine was built, said of McAuliffe's visit. "He was very wound up on it."

McAuliffe's rivals criticize his enthusiasm. "He's made it seem like chicken waste is the solution to the problem, and we're not even sure how much of an answer it is," said Jesse Ferguson, spokesman for Brian Moran, another Democratic candidate. But McAuliffe says it is a good way to get people thinking about the environment. "People perk up," he said. If this is what I need to do to get people's attention on alternative energy and jobs, so be it."