"Colusa Biomass Energy Corporation is located in the heart of the Sacramento Valley's rice producing area, where it finds its initial feedstock. The company will produce ethanol, silica/sodium oxide and lignin from waste rice straw, waste rice hulls and other cellulosics.
The biorefinery will consume approximately 130,000 tons of waste biomass annually, producing 12.5 million gallons (47.3 million liters) of ethanol and 16,800 tons of silica/sodium oxide, commercial carbon dioxide, and a high energy lignin fuel that will be used internally in the plant to reduce the cost of natural gas.
This proprietary design will incorporate the most current developments in systems for the refining of ethanol from agricultural harvest residues such as straw and agricultural wastes. By using harvest waste, nothing is taken from the food supply. When this production model is implemented in the United States, agricultural residues and wastes will be available for refining ethanol to meet the needs of worldwide transportation. - Tom Bowers, Colusa Biomass CEO
BBI International is a company committed to providing the most thorough feasibility studies in the business. Its team of engineers and market specialists has an intimate understanding of bioenergy and agricultural processing research and analysis, through decades of hands on experience. Ethanol and biodiesel projects are at the core of its workload and expertise. BBI International clients include future producers, existing producers, state and federal agencies, and independent research groups.The company has a US patent on a bioconversion technique that can use cellulose to produce ethanol; the starting materials for its process are rice straw and rice hulls, and in the future corn stover and cobs, wheat straw and husks, wood chips from forest slashing, and sawdust from saw mills.
Using 2003 farm data from the US Department of Agriculture and taking into consideration the availability of these cellulose based materials, it has been conservatively estimated that over 1.0 trillion gallons of ethanol could be produced per year from U.S. biomass. This would reduce the importation of the country's oil by an estimated 75%.
Colusa's membrane technology differs from traditional spiral wound membrane systems. A spiral wound membrane, both RO and UF, increases the surface area of the membrane winding a membrane/separator system into the shape of a star. Due to the membrane/separator proximities spiral wound membranes are 'plugged' by particulate matter in the feed liquid.
The Colusa system instead places the membrane directly in contact with the feed liquid and pumping this feed liquid at a high flow rate. This flow rate acts to 'sweep' the membrane and prevents 'plugging'. The niche that Colusa Biomass Energy Corporation's system can fill is its ability to filter thixotropic (viscous) Newtonian and non-Newtonian liquids. For example, its ulrafiltration system can take tomato juice (Newtonian liquid) and by removing the water, produce tomato paste (non-Newtonian liquid.)
The ultrafiltration can be cast to do a total rejection of 5,000 to 20,000 molecular weight molecules. Large molecules like lignin, enzymes, bacteria, lactose, colloidal matter, fine suspended particulate matter, and proteins will not pass through the membrane."
Oriģināls
2007-12-13
ASV pieņemts likums par automašīnu energoefektivitātes paaugstināšanu
" The US House of Representatives has voted through a Bill that seeks radical changes in the way energy is utilised. The new Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, for the first time in 32 years, raise the bar for vehicle fuel efficiency in the US to be achieved by 2022 by 40 per cent to 35 miles per gallon (mpg) for both cars and light trucks including sport utility vehicles. The current standard is 27.5 mpg for passenger automobiles and 20.7 mpg for light trucks.
While this is not enough, it is a beginning. The policy is expected to help American consumers save an average of $700 to $1,000 a year. The law also calls for increasing the production of renewable fuels by five times by 2022. It calls for the generation of ethanol to be raised to 36 billion gallons a year and recommends ethanol to be produced from multiple feedstock including agricultural and forest residue apart from corn. The Bill also sets efficiency standards for electric appliances like light bulbs, washing machines etc. It aims to phase out incandescent bulbs gradually.
India must take a cue from this legislation. Oil accounts for a third of India's import bill and this country is one of the 10 largest oil consuming nations in the world. Nearly 70 per cent of our oil is imported, a factor that becomes painful when oil prices are ruling at record highs and are only set to increase. If the supply side presents a grim picture, it should also be remembered that the share of the transport sector in total energy demand is growing all the time. As in other parts of the world, the Indian transport sector accounts for 25 per cent of total commercial energy consumed, a share that could rise to 30 per cent by, say, 2030. Automobile manufacturers have demonstrated that India is a huge market for small cars. Despite passenger car sales rising by 100 per cent in the last five years alone, India does not have any mandatory fuel efficiency norms in place. The automobile boom entails phenomenal increase in petroleum consumption.
With oil prices touching record highs, the framing and enforcement of the norms must be fast-tracked. Fuel-guzzling vehicles must be taxed heavier than others. The money raised must be utilised to fund research in efficient fuel technologies. Implementation of the norms will directly result in reducing our dependence on imports as well as cut down on pollution. The National Integrated Energy Policy estimates that if vehicle efficiency is improved by 50 per cent, the country stands to save 86 million tons of oil worth over $30 billion at current prices by 2031. The introduction of hybrid and flexible fuel models by Indian and multinational vehicle manufacturers must be encouraged."
Oriģināls
While this is not enough, it is a beginning. The policy is expected to help American consumers save an average of $700 to $1,000 a year. The law also calls for increasing the production of renewable fuels by five times by 2022. It calls for the generation of ethanol to be raised to 36 billion gallons a year and recommends ethanol to be produced from multiple feedstock including agricultural and forest residue apart from corn. The Bill also sets efficiency standards for electric appliances like light bulbs, washing machines etc. It aims to phase out incandescent bulbs gradually.
India must take a cue from this legislation. Oil accounts for a third of India's import bill and this country is one of the 10 largest oil consuming nations in the world. Nearly 70 per cent of our oil is imported, a factor that becomes painful when oil prices are ruling at record highs and are only set to increase. If the supply side presents a grim picture, it should also be remembered that the share of the transport sector in total energy demand is growing all the time. As in other parts of the world, the Indian transport sector accounts for 25 per cent of total commercial energy consumed, a share that could rise to 30 per cent by, say, 2030. Automobile manufacturers have demonstrated that India is a huge market for small cars. Despite passenger car sales rising by 100 per cent in the last five years alone, India does not have any mandatory fuel efficiency norms in place. The automobile boom entails phenomenal increase in petroleum consumption.
With oil prices touching record highs, the framing and enforcement of the norms must be fast-tracked. Fuel-guzzling vehicles must be taxed heavier than others. The money raised must be utilised to fund research in efficient fuel technologies. Implementation of the norms will directly result in reducing our dependence on imports as well as cut down on pollution. The National Integrated Energy Policy estimates that if vehicle efficiency is improved by 50 per cent, the country stands to save 86 million tons of oil worth over $30 billion at current prices by 2031. The introduction of hybrid and flexible fuel models by Indian and multinational vehicle manufacturers must be encouraged."
Oriģināls
Vēl viens rakstiņš par videi nedraudzīgo biodegvielu
"Anne Petermann, Co-Director of the Global Justice Ecology Project, is in Bali for the UN’s Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). She believes that the biofuel boom, even ‘second generation’ fuels, are adding to the pressure on the environment, resulting in further deforestation, increased chemical use and loss of ecosystems - in the name of profit. Petermann explains:
‘Indigenous peoples and non-governmental organizations have come to Bali, Indonesia for the 13th Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC hoping to infuse some common sense into an otherwise obscene process that prioritises corporate profit over human rights, forest protection or even meaningful action to halt global warming.
Many of these groups took to the streets on 8 December in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia for the international day of action against climate change. . .They were joined by groups all over the world in demanding that real and immediate action be taken to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by the scientist-recommended 60-80 per cent that is needed to stop further warming of the planet.
Corporations, on the other hand, are moving ahead with schemes to use rising public concern about global warming as a means to accelerate profit-making. One of the most prominent of these schemes is large-scale production of biofuels. In the past 2 years, a corporate biofuels feeding frenzy has begun.
Food for Fuel
Dramatic rises in the price of important food sources such as corn, however, have raised concerns about the human cost of producing fuel from food. One study revealed that the amount of grain required to fill the tank of a single sport utility vehicle or SUV could feed one person for an entire year. Other studies have exposed the poor energy return of biofuel crops, some of which require more total energy to produce than is derived from the fuel that is created. These serious problems with biofuels have led groups to re-name them ‘agro fuels’ which reflects the corporate emphasis of large-scale monocultures of crops as biofuel feedstocks.
The public backlash against food-based fuel has led to industry and governments focusing more investment into so-called ‘second generation’ agrofuels that are manufactured out of inedible cellulose-based feedstocks such as corn stalks, trees or switchgrass.
Industry argues that because these feedstocks are not edible, their use ends the fears of agrofuels competing with food. However, as the demand for biofuels increases and the price for the feedstocks climbs higher, agribusiness and farmers will shift their agricultural production into those crops with higher profit returns—whether they are crops of switchgrass or eucalyptus. Biofuel crops will continue to compete with food crops for available land. Further concerns have been raised about switchgrass due to its invasive nature—conservationists fear that widespread use of switchgrass will lead to its escape into native ecosystems and the displacement of indigenous plants and wildlife.
Use of corn stalks for ethanol is posed as a win-win. The corn is harvested and the corn stalks used to produce ethanol—no competition for food. These corn crop residues, however, are critical to the soil structure. Stripping every last bit of plant from the land leaves nothing for the soil. This in turn requires more chemical inputs for future crops, with many of the chemical inputs—fertilizers and pesticides—being petroleum-based.
Others are researching production of ethanol from wood, including development of trees specifically genetically engineered to produce agrofuels.
Deforestation contributes roughly 20 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions annually and it does not take a genius to understand that manufacturing fuel from wood is not a great strategy if reducing deforestation is one of your goals. Ironically, however, that is exactly what is occurring at the UN climate change convention in Bali. Reducing Emissions from Deforestation in Developing Countries, known as REDD, is on the top of the agenda at this year’s Conference of the Parties. At the same time, agrofuels are being heavily promoted there.
Existing agrofuel monoculture plantations of soy and oil palm have already been documented as destroying important forests. Oil palm expansion in Indonesia has already caused massive destruction of the nation’s peat forests—which are critical carbon sinks. The logging and burning of these peat forests has in fact contributed to Indonesia being the world’s third largest emitter of carbon. Brazil was actually experiencing a drop in deforestation before the biofuels boom. But now soy expansion in Brazil, partly for biodiesel, has greatly accelerated deforestation in the Amazon rainforest.
The new emphasis on cellulosic ethanol from wood threatens to massively increase the logging of the world’s remaining native forests with tremendous repercussions for forest-dependent peoples and biodiversity.
In the US, the Southeast region of the country has become the world’s leading supplier of pulp for paper, with one in five forested acres converted to loblolly pine plantations. The rising prominence of biofuels, however, has companies looking at these same pine plantations to feed future cellulosic ethanol mills. The US State of Georgia has stated that they want to be the ‘biofuels Saudi Arabia’ using their pine plantations as the feedstock.
The diversion of this timber from paper pulp to biofuels, without an attendant drop in paper consumption, will push demand for paper pulp elsewhere resulting in accelerated conversion of native forests into monoculture tree plantations, as well as increased legal and illegal logging of forests. Once again, indigenous communities find themselves threatened by the extraction of resources for Northern consumption.
Not Natural
Industry’s other scheme for cellulosic ethanol from wood involves genetically engineering trees to make them more easily digested into ethanol. These ‘low lignin’ trees, however, come with a high price. Genetic engineering is a revolutionary technology, and the use of it on a being as complex and long-lived as a tree is a risky endeavor. There is no way to know the long term consequences. The commercial release of genetically engineered (GE) trees into the environment will inevitably result in the escape of GE tree seeds or pollen into native ecosystems up to hundreds of kilometers away. Escaped GE trees can then go on to contaminate more trees and ecosystems in an endless and irreversible cycle. In the case of GE low-lignin trees, known impacts include a reduced ability to sequester carbon in the soils and, when they die, more rapid decomposition and carbon release. Development of huge plantations of GE low-lignin trees, therefore, is clearly not a great strategy for reducing carbon emissions. The impacts on biodiversity or local communities is largely unknown.
Because these trees are low in lignin, which is the structural part of a tree that protects it against disease, insects, and environmental stresses like cold and wind, low-lignin trees may also be engineered for traits such as disease or insect resistance, which greatly magnifies the harmful impacts these trees have on native biodiversity and ecosystems.
To conclude, second-generation agrofuels do not solve the problems posed by current agrofuel technologies. In fact, they continue to compete with food, they accelerate deforestation and displacement of forest-dependent communities, and they threaten to open a Pandora’s Box of potential impacts in the form of genetically engineered trees.
The first and most obvious step in solving the global warming crisis is a dramatic reduction in greenhouse gas emissions at their source in the industrialized countries of the North. Deforestation and conversion of forests to plantations must be halted, accompanied by a dramatic drop in consumption of wood-based products.
Additionally, the application of appropriate technologies on a small, local, sustainable scale is critical. The solution to global warming will come in thousands of different forms, specific to various cultures and regions. This is the message of the peoples from around the world who came to Bali, Indonesia to fight for action on global warming."
Oriģināls
‘Indigenous peoples and non-governmental organizations have come to Bali, Indonesia for the 13th Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC hoping to infuse some common sense into an otherwise obscene process that prioritises corporate profit over human rights, forest protection or even meaningful action to halt global warming.
Many of these groups took to the streets on 8 December in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia for the international day of action against climate change. . .They were joined by groups all over the world in demanding that real and immediate action be taken to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by the scientist-recommended 60-80 per cent that is needed to stop further warming of the planet.
Corporations, on the other hand, are moving ahead with schemes to use rising public concern about global warming as a means to accelerate profit-making. One of the most prominent of these schemes is large-scale production of biofuels. In the past 2 years, a corporate biofuels feeding frenzy has begun.
Food for Fuel
Dramatic rises in the price of important food sources such as corn, however, have raised concerns about the human cost of producing fuel from food. One study revealed that the amount of grain required to fill the tank of a single sport utility vehicle or SUV could feed one person for an entire year. Other studies have exposed the poor energy return of biofuel crops, some of which require more total energy to produce than is derived from the fuel that is created. These serious problems with biofuels have led groups to re-name them ‘agro fuels’ which reflects the corporate emphasis of large-scale monocultures of crops as biofuel feedstocks.
The public backlash against food-based fuel has led to industry and governments focusing more investment into so-called ‘second generation’ agrofuels that are manufactured out of inedible cellulose-based feedstocks such as corn stalks, trees or switchgrass.
Industry argues that because these feedstocks are not edible, their use ends the fears of agrofuels competing with food. However, as the demand for biofuels increases and the price for the feedstocks climbs higher, agribusiness and farmers will shift their agricultural production into those crops with higher profit returns—whether they are crops of switchgrass or eucalyptus. Biofuel crops will continue to compete with food crops for available land. Further concerns have been raised about switchgrass due to its invasive nature—conservationists fear that widespread use of switchgrass will lead to its escape into native ecosystems and the displacement of indigenous plants and wildlife.
Use of corn stalks for ethanol is posed as a win-win. The corn is harvested and the corn stalks used to produce ethanol—no competition for food. These corn crop residues, however, are critical to the soil structure. Stripping every last bit of plant from the land leaves nothing for the soil. This in turn requires more chemical inputs for future crops, with many of the chemical inputs—fertilizers and pesticides—being petroleum-based.
Others are researching production of ethanol from wood, including development of trees specifically genetically engineered to produce agrofuels.
Deforestation contributes roughly 20 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions annually and it does not take a genius to understand that manufacturing fuel from wood is not a great strategy if reducing deforestation is one of your goals. Ironically, however, that is exactly what is occurring at the UN climate change convention in Bali. Reducing Emissions from Deforestation in Developing Countries, known as REDD, is on the top of the agenda at this year’s Conference of the Parties. At the same time, agrofuels are being heavily promoted there.
Existing agrofuel monoculture plantations of soy and oil palm have already been documented as destroying important forests. Oil palm expansion in Indonesia has already caused massive destruction of the nation’s peat forests—which are critical carbon sinks. The logging and burning of these peat forests has in fact contributed to Indonesia being the world’s third largest emitter of carbon. Brazil was actually experiencing a drop in deforestation before the biofuels boom. But now soy expansion in Brazil, partly for biodiesel, has greatly accelerated deforestation in the Amazon rainforest.
The new emphasis on cellulosic ethanol from wood threatens to massively increase the logging of the world’s remaining native forests with tremendous repercussions for forest-dependent peoples and biodiversity.
In the US, the Southeast region of the country has become the world’s leading supplier of pulp for paper, with one in five forested acres converted to loblolly pine plantations. The rising prominence of biofuels, however, has companies looking at these same pine plantations to feed future cellulosic ethanol mills. The US State of Georgia has stated that they want to be the ‘biofuels Saudi Arabia’ using their pine plantations as the feedstock.
The diversion of this timber from paper pulp to biofuels, without an attendant drop in paper consumption, will push demand for paper pulp elsewhere resulting in accelerated conversion of native forests into monoculture tree plantations, as well as increased legal and illegal logging of forests. Once again, indigenous communities find themselves threatened by the extraction of resources for Northern consumption.
Not Natural
Industry’s other scheme for cellulosic ethanol from wood involves genetically engineering trees to make them more easily digested into ethanol. These ‘low lignin’ trees, however, come with a high price. Genetic engineering is a revolutionary technology, and the use of it on a being as complex and long-lived as a tree is a risky endeavor. There is no way to know the long term consequences. The commercial release of genetically engineered (GE) trees into the environment will inevitably result in the escape of GE tree seeds or pollen into native ecosystems up to hundreds of kilometers away. Escaped GE trees can then go on to contaminate more trees and ecosystems in an endless and irreversible cycle. In the case of GE low-lignin trees, known impacts include a reduced ability to sequester carbon in the soils and, when they die, more rapid decomposition and carbon release. Development of huge plantations of GE low-lignin trees, therefore, is clearly not a great strategy for reducing carbon emissions. The impacts on biodiversity or local communities is largely unknown.
Because these trees are low in lignin, which is the structural part of a tree that protects it against disease, insects, and environmental stresses like cold and wind, low-lignin trees may also be engineered for traits such as disease or insect resistance, which greatly magnifies the harmful impacts these trees have on native biodiversity and ecosystems.
To conclude, second-generation agrofuels do not solve the problems posed by current agrofuel technologies. In fact, they continue to compete with food, they accelerate deforestation and displacement of forest-dependent communities, and they threaten to open a Pandora’s Box of potential impacts in the form of genetically engineered trees.
The first and most obvious step in solving the global warming crisis is a dramatic reduction in greenhouse gas emissions at their source in the industrialized countries of the North. Deforestation and conversion of forests to plantations must be halted, accompanied by a dramatic drop in consumption of wood-based products.
Additionally, the application of appropriate technologies on a small, local, sustainable scale is critical. The solution to global warming will come in thousands of different forms, specific to various cultures and regions. This is the message of the peoples from around the world who came to Bali, Indonesia to fight for action on global warming."
Oriģināls
2007-12-01
Izveidota Indijas un Japānas sadarbības grupa atjaunojamās enerģijas jomā
"India has set up a working group to coordinate activities with Japan in the field of new and renewable energy.
"A working group on new and renewable energy has been established under the India-Japan Energy Dialogue to coordinate cooperation activities in new and renewable energy," Junior Indian Minister for New and Renewable Energy Vilas Muttemwar told Parliament Tuesday, Kazinform ciets UPI.
He said the first meeting of the working group was held June 28 in New Delhi wherein it was decided that both sides would explore ways to further cooperate in the field of new and renewable energy.
"New and renewable energy has been assuming increasing significance in recent times with the growing concern for the country's energy security and environment. Bulk of the energy needs of the common man comes from renewable energy resources, mainly agro and forest residues as well as animal wastes," he said.
He said more than 4 million family-sized biogas plants, 1.4 million solar photovoltaic systems for lighting and other applications, and solar thermal systems covering 2 million square meters had been added to the electricity grids. Besides, about 11,000 megawatts of power from renewables has been added to the electricity grids, he said.""
Oriģināls
"A working group on new and renewable energy has been established under the India-Japan Energy Dialogue to coordinate cooperation activities in new and renewable energy," Junior Indian Minister for New and Renewable Energy Vilas Muttemwar told Parliament Tuesday, Kazinform ciets UPI.
He said the first meeting of the working group was held June 28 in New Delhi wherein it was decided that both sides would explore ways to further cooperate in the field of new and renewable energy.
"New and renewable energy has been assuming increasing significance in recent times with the growing concern for the country's energy security and environment. Bulk of the energy needs of the common man comes from renewable energy resources, mainly agro and forest residues as well as animal wastes," he said.
He said more than 4 million family-sized biogas plants, 1.4 million solar photovoltaic systems for lighting and other applications, and solar thermal systems covering 2 million square meters had been added to the electricity grids. Besides, about 11,000 megawatts of power from renewables has been added to the electricity grids, he said.""
Oriģināls
Drusku par bioetanolu no cukurbietēm
"The first bioethanol plant in the UK is run by British Sugar in Wissington, Norfolk and is located alongside the world's largest beet sugar factory. The 70 million litres of bioethanol produced annually are produced from 110,000 tonnes of locally grown sugar beet.
Lord Rooker said:
“Climate change is the biggest challenge facing society today. But it is a challenge we can tackle by using the skills and innovation that are prevalent in the UK – this groundbreaking plant is a good example of this.
“Sustainable biofuels can play an important role in reducing our carbon footprint and I am pleased to see the UK is leading the way in promoting sustainable biofuel production.”
The first bioethanol plant in the UK is run by British Sugar in Wissington, Norfolk and is located alongside the world's largest beet sugar factory. The 70 million litres of bioethanol produced annually are produced from 110,000 tonnes of locally grown sugar beet.
The sugar factory's combined heat and power plant also provides energy for the bioethanol plant ensuring that bioethanol produced delivers 60% lifecycle carbon savings compared with ordinary petrol.
Notes to editors
1. The UK has a legally binding target under the Kyoto Protocol to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 12.5% below 1990 levels by 2008-2012. The UK's Climate Change Bill proposes a legally binding requirement to reduce UK carbon dioxide emissions by 26-32% by 2020 and 60% by 2050. The UK is on course to achieve the Kyoto target.
2. Sustainable biofuels can make an important contribution to tackling climate change. At a 5% biofuel penetration, the UK would save around 0.7 – 0.8 million tonnes of carbon per annum, or about 0.4% of the UK’s total emissions. Looking forward, advances in technology could see biofuels achieving higher levels of carbon savings. If the EU targets for 2020 are met, carbon savings could approach 7 or 8% of emissions from road transport.
3. At the global level, the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation ( FAO ) have predicted that biofuels may provide 25% of the world’s energy needs over the next 15 to 20 years.
4. The UK has a measured and balanced approach to biofuels and is leading the debate in the EU and internationally on the sustainability issues. Promoting biofuels, ( with appropriate environmental and social safeguards ) as part of a wider package of Government action to tackle climate change is the right way forward.
5. The Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation ( RTFO ) is due to deliver significant carbon savings by 2010. It includes a sophisticated reporting mechanism on greenhouse gas emissions and environmental and social criteria to encourage transport fuel suppliers to source sustainable, low carbon biofuels. The UK is a world leader in this area.
6. The Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation ( RTFO ) will be the equivalent of taking close to a million cars off the road, since the average car emits a little less than a tonne of carbon ( 3½ tonnes of CO2 ) per annum.
7. In 2008/9, the total package of support for biofuels under the RTFO will be up to 35 penceper litre ( made up of a duty incentive of 20 pence per litre, and a buy out price of 15 pence per litre for those who do not meet the target ). In 2009/10, the total combination of support will be up to 35 pence per litre. In 2010/11, it will be up to 30 pence per litre.
8. The Energy Crops Scheme 2007-13 will provide support for planting short rotation coppice and miscanthus for heat and power generation. The EU's annual €45/ha Energy Aid payment is available to farmers for energy crops grown on non set-aside land for heat, power and transport biofuels. Farmers can also receive the Single Payment for energy crops on set-aside or where the EU's €45 per hectare energy aid payment is claimed for crops on non set-aside land. Support for Research & Development is looking to double the output of energy crops by developing crops with maximised yield and resistance to fungal diseases and pests.
9. The environmental industries sector is a key growth area. It is already employing more than 400,000 people in 17,000 companies with an annual turnover of more than £20 billion.
10. In the short term and using current technologies, the UK could produce enough biofuels for around 2.5% of our road transport fuel needs without increasing pressures on the environment and also leaving land available for other bioenergy crops uses. In the longer term advances in technology that allow a wider range of feedstocks to be used, so called ‘second generation’ biofuels, should allow much greater biofuels penetration. A study for the Department for Transport estimated that the UK might be theoretically capable of supplying as much as one third of its transport fuel demands by 2050.
11. Analysis by the European Commission indicates that the EU biofuel target of 10% by 2020 is achievable without excessive impacts on food prices. This is partly because there is potential to increase production in response to additional demand. This includes the development of second generation biofuels which can use non-food feedstocks, including waste. The Government will monitor how markets are affected by growing biofuel demand and tailor its policy accordingly."
Oriģināls
Lord Rooker said:
“Climate change is the biggest challenge facing society today. But it is a challenge we can tackle by using the skills and innovation that are prevalent in the UK – this groundbreaking plant is a good example of this.
“Sustainable biofuels can play an important role in reducing our carbon footprint and I am pleased to see the UK is leading the way in promoting sustainable biofuel production.”
The first bioethanol plant in the UK is run by British Sugar in Wissington, Norfolk and is located alongside the world's largest beet sugar factory. The 70 million litres of bioethanol produced annually are produced from 110,000 tonnes of locally grown sugar beet.
The sugar factory's combined heat and power plant also provides energy for the bioethanol plant ensuring that bioethanol produced delivers 60% lifecycle carbon savings compared with ordinary petrol.
Notes to editors
1. The UK has a legally binding target under the Kyoto Protocol to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 12.5% below 1990 levels by 2008-2012. The UK's Climate Change Bill proposes a legally binding requirement to reduce UK carbon dioxide emissions by 26-32% by 2020 and 60% by 2050. The UK is on course to achieve the Kyoto target.
2. Sustainable biofuels can make an important contribution to tackling climate change. At a 5% biofuel penetration, the UK would save around 0.7 – 0.8 million tonnes of carbon per annum, or about 0.4% of the UK’s total emissions. Looking forward, advances in technology could see biofuels achieving higher levels of carbon savings. If the EU targets for 2020 are met, carbon savings could approach 7 or 8% of emissions from road transport.
3. At the global level, the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation ( FAO ) have predicted that biofuels may provide 25% of the world’s energy needs over the next 15 to 20 years.
4. The UK has a measured and balanced approach to biofuels and is leading the debate in the EU and internationally on the sustainability issues. Promoting biofuels, ( with appropriate environmental and social safeguards ) as part of a wider package of Government action to tackle climate change is the right way forward.
5. The Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation ( RTFO ) is due to deliver significant carbon savings by 2010. It includes a sophisticated reporting mechanism on greenhouse gas emissions and environmental and social criteria to encourage transport fuel suppliers to source sustainable, low carbon biofuels. The UK is a world leader in this area.
6. The Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation ( RTFO ) will be the equivalent of taking close to a million cars off the road, since the average car emits a little less than a tonne of carbon ( 3½ tonnes of CO2 ) per annum.
7. In 2008/9, the total package of support for biofuels under the RTFO will be up to 35 penceper litre ( made up of a duty incentive of 20 pence per litre, and a buy out price of 15 pence per litre for those who do not meet the target ). In 2009/10, the total combination of support will be up to 35 pence per litre. In 2010/11, it will be up to 30 pence per litre.
8. The Energy Crops Scheme 2007-13 will provide support for planting short rotation coppice and miscanthus for heat and power generation. The EU's annual €45/ha Energy Aid payment is available to farmers for energy crops grown on non set-aside land for heat, power and transport biofuels. Farmers can also receive the Single Payment for energy crops on set-aside or where the EU's €45 per hectare energy aid payment is claimed for crops on non set-aside land. Support for Research & Development is looking to double the output of energy crops by developing crops with maximised yield and resistance to fungal diseases and pests.
9. The environmental industries sector is a key growth area. It is already employing more than 400,000 people in 17,000 companies with an annual turnover of more than £20 billion.
10. In the short term and using current technologies, the UK could produce enough biofuels for around 2.5% of our road transport fuel needs without increasing pressures on the environment and also leaving land available for other bioenergy crops uses. In the longer term advances in technology that allow a wider range of feedstocks to be used, so called ‘second generation’ biofuels, should allow much greater biofuels penetration. A study for the Department for Transport estimated that the UK might be theoretically capable of supplying as much as one third of its transport fuel demands by 2050.
11. Analysis by the European Commission indicates that the EU biofuel target of 10% by 2020 is achievable without excessive impacts on food prices. This is partly because there is potential to increase production in response to additional demand. This includes the development of second generation biofuels which can use non-food feedstocks, including waste. The Government will monitor how markets are affected by growing biofuel demand and tailor its policy accordingly."
Oriģināls
Kārklu plantācijas un citas energokultūras pašnodrošinājumam ar enerģiju lauksaimniecībā
"IN this ‘decade of climate change’ food security was back on the agenda and farming’s response to climate change could contribute to energy security too, the NFU East Anglia’s regional conference was told.
Dr Jonathan Scurlock, NFU chief adviser on renewable energy and climate change, said climate change was more of an opportunity than a threat.
“We can deliver some of the solutions to adapting and mitigating climate change and with the $100 barrel of oil on the horizon we can deliver alternatives,” he said.
As individuals, farmers should be looking to invest in winter reservoirs and energy efficiency, such as on-site energy generation. Livestock farmers might also need to look at protecting animals from the extremes of weather, he said.
Perennial energy crops such as short rotation coppice willow could provide solid biomass fuel for power stations, local heat schemes and future transport fuels.
“We need 10 times the current amount of these crops just to get the market going. However, there is less flexibility in marketing – these crops cannot be diverted back to food uses like grain-based feedstocks.”
Farmers also had the opportunity to use small amounts of transport biofuels on their farms, as it was possible to produce 2,500 litres per year without registration or payment of fuel excise duty, which could be enough supply for one small commercial vehicle for a year, he said.
“We believe that we can be better than carbon neutral – we can be carbon negative in the future,” he said. “It is our aspiration that every farmer should have the opportunity to diversify and export energy services.”
Former Agriculture Minister John Gummer said it was important that, with rising prices, the public did not get the impression that farmers were making a fortune.
“We need to make sure that people understand the realities, the costs and inputs, particularly as input prices are up because of the increase in oil prices.
He stressed the importance of being part of the European Union. For agriculture, the EU was ‘utterly crucial’ he said. “It gives us a base of real strength which we will never have in Britain for all sorts of historical reasons.”
With the pressures of climate change and increasing world population the world was changing hugely, he said. “The challenge for farmers is how to meet that change and for politicians it is how we make it possible for farmers to make the changes more effectively.”
NFU director general Richard Macdonald said it was important to have sustainable markets – reasonable prices to be to afford to do what society wanted and make a profit.
“In order to do that we need to minimise regulatory burden.”
He said the ‘silver lining’ to the bluetongue and foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks had been that he and NFU president Peter Kendall had got to meet Prime Minister Gordon Brown several times to talk about the importance of food production and food security.
Regional NFU director Pamela Forbes said outside the area people did not perceive East Anglia as being a livestock region but bluetongue had highlighted how many finishers there were there.
On prices, she added: “Rising commodity prices in general are difficult for the livestock sector so we need to put even more pressure on supermarkets to see a lift in their prices.
“If we can just get over the current nasty hurdles currently in our way there is great scope.”"
Oriģināls
Dr Jonathan Scurlock, NFU chief adviser on renewable energy and climate change, said climate change was more of an opportunity than a threat.
“We can deliver some of the solutions to adapting and mitigating climate change and with the $100 barrel of oil on the horizon we can deliver alternatives,” he said.
As individuals, farmers should be looking to invest in winter reservoirs and energy efficiency, such as on-site energy generation. Livestock farmers might also need to look at protecting animals from the extremes of weather, he said.
Perennial energy crops such as short rotation coppice willow could provide solid biomass fuel for power stations, local heat schemes and future transport fuels.
“We need 10 times the current amount of these crops just to get the market going. However, there is less flexibility in marketing – these crops cannot be diverted back to food uses like grain-based feedstocks.”
Farmers also had the opportunity to use small amounts of transport biofuels on their farms, as it was possible to produce 2,500 litres per year without registration or payment of fuel excise duty, which could be enough supply for one small commercial vehicle for a year, he said.
“We believe that we can be better than carbon neutral – we can be carbon negative in the future,” he said. “It is our aspiration that every farmer should have the opportunity to diversify and export energy services.”
Former Agriculture Minister John Gummer said it was important that, with rising prices, the public did not get the impression that farmers were making a fortune.
“We need to make sure that people understand the realities, the costs and inputs, particularly as input prices are up because of the increase in oil prices.
He stressed the importance of being part of the European Union. For agriculture, the EU was ‘utterly crucial’ he said. “It gives us a base of real strength which we will never have in Britain for all sorts of historical reasons.”
With the pressures of climate change and increasing world population the world was changing hugely, he said. “The challenge for farmers is how to meet that change and for politicians it is how we make it possible for farmers to make the changes more effectively.”
NFU director general Richard Macdonald said it was important to have sustainable markets – reasonable prices to be to afford to do what society wanted and make a profit.
“In order to do that we need to minimise regulatory burden.”
He said the ‘silver lining’ to the bluetongue and foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks had been that he and NFU president Peter Kendall had got to meet Prime Minister Gordon Brown several times to talk about the importance of food production and food security.
Regional NFU director Pamela Forbes said outside the area people did not perceive East Anglia as being a livestock region but bluetongue had highlighted how many finishers there were there.
On prices, she added: “Rising commodity prices in general are difficult for the livestock sector so we need to put even more pressure on supermarkets to see a lift in their prices.
“If we can just get over the current nasty hurdles currently in our way there is great scope.”"
Oriģināls
Akmeņogļu patēriņa pieaugums visvairāk veicina CO2 emisijas pieaugumu
According to the IPCC Synthesis Report, the most important time-critical action needed to avert climate disasters concerns coal. A surge in global coal use in the last few years has converted a potential slowdown of CO2 emissions into a more rapid increase. A moratorium on coal-fuel electric power generation must begin in the West, which is responsible for three-quarters of climate change (via 75% of the present atmospheric CO2 excess, above the pre-industrial level).
Plašāk
Plašāk
Koksnes gazifikācija Ugandas elektroapdāges attīstībai
"Walking along most streets in Kampala today, one is struck by the invariable whining sounds from small generators in merchandise shops- a reminder of the country's struggling economy and the fact that the energy sector is facing a severe shortage of electricity.
Early in 2006, the government said hydroelectricity production would be reduced in a bid to check the water outflow from Lake Victoria. Thus, from an operating capacity of 380MW, a mere 135 MW output was allowed to be produced.
Thermal generators have been installed to produce an extra 100MW and there are plans to construct more hydropower stations along the Nile apart from the already started Bujagali. The Ministry of Energy is concerned about energy saving techniques, as well as renewable energies. Among the latter is gasification of biomass.
There is urgent need to increase Uganda's electricity supply and more importantly reduce the country's dependence on the presently meager hydro electric power generation and on the expensive fossil fuels which power our thermo-plants.
To generate those 100 MW thermal we burn more than half a million litres of diesel per month.
Is it possible to get electricity by burning other fuels apart from fossil derived ones? Yes! We can burn biomass. A certain tea estate is already getting most of its power from burning eucalyptus wood in Fort Portal. Their system is a gasification one.
If one has well trained technical people and the fuel supply is available, a company could produce its own power without paying electricity bills or buying the now expensive diesel.
In an attempt to provide Uganda with such expertise in the fuel chain and gasification techniques, CREEC (Centre for Research in Energy and Energy Conservation) has developed a programme to work with this pioneer and help other private sector players to join the renewable energy group.
Simply put, gasification is a conversion of solid fuels into a combustible gas. Wood-gas generators, called gasogene, were used to power motor vehicles in Europe during World War II fuel shortages.
Essentially, the process of biomass gasification converts the carbon, hydrogen and oxygen in the cellulose, hemi-cellulose, and lignin that constitute biomass into a mixture of carbon monoxide, hydrogen, methane, carbon dioxide, water vapour and small amounts of more complex organic species.
The solution for Uganda, in the short term, is the simple gasification process to supply small scale electricity generation based on indigenous fuels. By proper design of the components of the system it should be possible to manufacture all the components of the gasifier in Uganda. Generators to be attached to the gasifier are standard products that are commercially available from many local suppliers.
Uganda has a high potential for energy biomass production, with large amounts of land that could be used to produce sustainable yields with Short Rotation Coppice (SRC) systems on steep slopes, degraded land or agricultural fallows. The SRC systems have dense tree or shrub plantations that are harvested at 1-4 year intervals. You never cut the tree but just trim it. These systems can contribute to soil conservation, biodiversity and carbon sequestration.
Nitrogen-fixing species, such as Acacia ssp or the native Sesbania sesban, enhance soil fertility over the long run and build up organic matter. Agricultural residues can also be an excellent alternative to using woody biomass because they are abundant and renewable and normally available for free. Examples of these are coffee and rice husks, maize cobs, saw dust, etc.
Gasification is worth looking into as an option for rural electrification. Gasifiers can be built in Uganda and the zero or negative value agricultural residues can replace diesel as fuel for those engines."
Oriģināls
Early in 2006, the government said hydroelectricity production would be reduced in a bid to check the water outflow from Lake Victoria. Thus, from an operating capacity of 380MW, a mere 135 MW output was allowed to be produced.
Thermal generators have been installed to produce an extra 100MW and there are plans to construct more hydropower stations along the Nile apart from the already started Bujagali. The Ministry of Energy is concerned about energy saving techniques, as well as renewable energies. Among the latter is gasification of biomass.
There is urgent need to increase Uganda's electricity supply and more importantly reduce the country's dependence on the presently meager hydro electric power generation and on the expensive fossil fuels which power our thermo-plants.
To generate those 100 MW thermal we burn more than half a million litres of diesel per month.
Is it possible to get electricity by burning other fuels apart from fossil derived ones? Yes! We can burn biomass. A certain tea estate is already getting most of its power from burning eucalyptus wood in Fort Portal. Their system is a gasification one.
If one has well trained technical people and the fuel supply is available, a company could produce its own power without paying electricity bills or buying the now expensive diesel.
In an attempt to provide Uganda with such expertise in the fuel chain and gasification techniques, CREEC (Centre for Research in Energy and Energy Conservation) has developed a programme to work with this pioneer and help other private sector players to join the renewable energy group.
Simply put, gasification is a conversion of solid fuels into a combustible gas. Wood-gas generators, called gasogene, were used to power motor vehicles in Europe during World War II fuel shortages.
Essentially, the process of biomass gasification converts the carbon, hydrogen and oxygen in the cellulose, hemi-cellulose, and lignin that constitute biomass into a mixture of carbon monoxide, hydrogen, methane, carbon dioxide, water vapour and small amounts of more complex organic species.
The solution for Uganda, in the short term, is the simple gasification process to supply small scale electricity generation based on indigenous fuels. By proper design of the components of the system it should be possible to manufacture all the components of the gasifier in Uganda. Generators to be attached to the gasifier are standard products that are commercially available from many local suppliers.
Uganda has a high potential for energy biomass production, with large amounts of land that could be used to produce sustainable yields with Short Rotation Coppice (SRC) systems on steep slopes, degraded land or agricultural fallows. The SRC systems have dense tree or shrub plantations that are harvested at 1-4 year intervals. You never cut the tree but just trim it. These systems can contribute to soil conservation, biodiversity and carbon sequestration.
Nitrogen-fixing species, such as Acacia ssp or the native Sesbania sesban, enhance soil fertility over the long run and build up organic matter. Agricultural residues can also be an excellent alternative to using woody biomass because they are abundant and renewable and normally available for free. Examples of these are coffee and rice husks, maize cobs, saw dust, etc.
Gasification is worth looking into as an option for rural electrification. Gasifiers can be built in Uganda and the zero or negative value agricultural residues can replace diesel as fuel for those engines."
Oriģināls
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