Rural homeowners to see window views change
The drive to a low-carbon energy supply may mean growing different crops in England’s green and pleasant land.
And, similar to the changes rural homeowners saw when rapeseed acreage expanded in the 1970s and 1980s, covering the countryside with fields full of distinctive bright yellow flowers, tomorrow’s crops will bring new vistas to our windows and rambles once again.
The use of crops to generate electricity is touted by some experts as one of the best ways to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. Biomass energy uses products from forestry, energy crops and a variety of other materials which might otherwise be treated as waste as fuel and currently generates about 1% of Britain's electricity.
It’s advantage is that although it is burnt and so produces carbon, the carbon is readily taken back out of the environment by next year’s crop growth. In well designed power plants additional energy in the form of heat is used locally to heat buildings rather than wasted in vast cooling towers.
Crops can also be grown to produce oils that can be mixed with petrol to be used in modern car engines. Last year the government announced a target for biofuels to make up 5% of transport fuels by 2010.
Giant grasses and short rotation coppice willows are the two most likely crops to be seen for bio-mass power stations, whilst tall wheat is currently being grown for bio-fuel fermentation schemes.
Research is already being carried out on how best to blend energy crops into the landscape, as growing one million hectares of energy crops, like willow and elephant grass, to heat local factories, offices and hospitals, could have a significant impact on the rural landscape. In some areas they could eventually account for 10% of agricultural land.
Britain lags behind other European countries in its use of biomass as a renewable energy source. Austria, for example, supports 21% of its heat from biomass; and Sweden aims to cease using oil for energy purposes by 2020.
The drive to a low-carbon energy supply may mean growing different crops in England’s green and pleasant land.
And, similar to the changes rural homeowners saw when rapeseed acreage expanded in the 1970s and 1980s, covering the countryside with fields full of distinctive bright yellow flowers, tomorrow’s crops will bring new vistas to our windows and rambles once again.
The use of crops to generate electricity is touted by some experts as one of the best ways to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. Biomass energy uses products from forestry, energy crops and a variety of other materials which might otherwise be treated as waste as fuel and currently generates about 1% of Britain's electricity.
It’s advantage is that although it is burnt and so produces carbon, the carbon is readily taken back out of the environment by next year’s crop growth. In well designed power plants additional energy in the form of heat is used locally to heat buildings rather than wasted in vast cooling towers.
Crops can also be grown to produce oils that can be mixed with petrol to be used in modern car engines. Last year the government announced a target for biofuels to make up 5% of transport fuels by 2010.
Giant grasses and short rotation coppice willows are the two most likely crops to be seen for bio-mass power stations, whilst tall wheat is currently being grown for bio-fuel fermentation schemes.
Research is already being carried out on how best to blend energy crops into the landscape, as growing one million hectares of energy crops, like willow and elephant grass, to heat local factories, offices and hospitals, could have a significant impact on the rural landscape. In some areas they could eventually account for 10% of agricultural land.
Britain lags behind other European countries in its use of biomass as a renewable energy source. Austria, for example, supports 21% of its heat from biomass; and Sweden aims to cease using oil for energy purposes by 2020.
posted by tony at 6:46 PM
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