ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) -- An Annapolis company says a manure-to-energy plant proposed for a Pennsylvania egg farm will process waste from as many as 5 million chickens.

Annapolis-based EnergyWorks North America says its EnergyWorks Biopower subsidiary and Hillandale Farms Gettysburg have agreed to build the 2.5 megawatt plant. The companies say the plant, expected to begin operation in 2012, will turn the waste into gas to produce electricity.

In addition, the company says it will keep the waste from being spread as fertilizer on farm land, where it can run off into waterways. Reducing farm runoff is one of the key strategies in a new, tougher federal strategy to restore the Chesapeake Bay, a strategy that has prompted concern from agriculture interests over its costs.

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Online:

EnergyWorks -- http://www.energyworks.com/index.php

Copyright 2010 The AP.