Post by Urban Warrior on Apr 28, 2006 18:28:49 GMT
LONDON -
Britain announced measures to promote the production of electricity and heat from biomass on Thursday, including a capital grant scheme for "green" boilers and continuing support for energy crops.
"There is enormous potential for biomass to generate renewable energy to help the environment and to provide another possible market for our farmers," farm minister Lord Bach said in a statement.
Biomass, coming from forestry, energy crops and a variety of materials that might otherwise be treated as waste, currently generates about 1 percent of Britain's electricity and provides a similar proportion of heat generation.
Britain is seeking to produce 10 percent of its electricity from renewable sources such as biomass by 2010 and to double that proportion by 2020.
Energy minister Malcolm Wicks told a news conference that biomass could make a significant contribution, although he noted that "a great proportion" of the 10 percent target for 2010 would come from wind energy.
Lord Bach told the same conference there was scope to expand the area planted in Britain to energy crops which currently stands at a meagre 3,000 hectares, roughly 0.2 percent of the area sown with wheat.
ENERGY CROPS
"There are half-a-million hectares of set-aside land on which energy crops can be grown," he said.
The main energy crops in Britain are miscanthus, also known as elephant grass, and willow coppice.
"The importance to farmers at what clearly is a very difficult time for them is not to be underestimated," the farm minister said.
Farm incomes in Britain have been falling in recent years amid declining government subsidies. Energy crops have received government grants since 2000 although the current scheme was due to run out at the end of this year.
But the government said on Thursday it would continue to support energy crops in principle while noting they would form part of an environmental stewardship review in 2007/08.
A leading renewable energy trade association said measures such as the new capital grant programme would help the biomass industry but would only have a limited impact, adding the government's plans were a "missed opportunity."
"The opportunity to deliver real progress in tackling climate change, lift households out of fuel poverty and create sustainable jobs in the rural economy is still being squandered," said Graham Meeks, head of fuels and heat at the Renewable Energy Association.
Story by Nigel Hunt
REUTERS NEWS SERVICE
Britain announced measures to promote the production of electricity and heat from biomass on Thursday, including a capital grant scheme for "green" boilers and continuing support for energy crops.
"There is enormous potential for biomass to generate renewable energy to help the environment and to provide another possible market for our farmers," farm minister Lord Bach said in a statement.
Biomass, coming from forestry, energy crops and a variety of materials that might otherwise be treated as waste, currently generates about 1 percent of Britain's electricity and provides a similar proportion of heat generation.
Britain is seeking to produce 10 percent of its electricity from renewable sources such as biomass by 2010 and to double that proportion by 2020.
Energy minister Malcolm Wicks told a news conference that biomass could make a significant contribution, although he noted that "a great proportion" of the 10 percent target for 2010 would come from wind energy.
Lord Bach told the same conference there was scope to expand the area planted in Britain to energy crops which currently stands at a meagre 3,000 hectares, roughly 0.2 percent of the area sown with wheat.
ENERGY CROPS
"There are half-a-million hectares of set-aside land on which energy crops can be grown," he said.
The main energy crops in Britain are miscanthus, also known as elephant grass, and willow coppice.
"The importance to farmers at what clearly is a very difficult time for them is not to be underestimated," the farm minister said.
Farm incomes in Britain have been falling in recent years amid declining government subsidies. Energy crops have received government grants since 2000 although the current scheme was due to run out at the end of this year.
But the government said on Thursday it would continue to support energy crops in principle while noting they would form part of an environmental stewardship review in 2007/08.
A leading renewable energy trade association said measures such as the new capital grant programme would help the biomass industry but would only have a limited impact, adding the government's plans were a "missed opportunity."
"The opportunity to deliver real progress in tackling climate change, lift households out of fuel poverty and create sustainable jobs in the rural economy is still being squandered," said Graham Meeks, head of fuels and heat at the Renewable Energy Association.
Story by Nigel Hunt
REUTERS NEWS SERVICE