PRESS RELEASE

25/5/05

CALU HELPS SOWS SEEDS FOR A RENEWABLE FUTURE

THE green, green, grass of home is set to become the energy supplier of the future, as farmers are encouraged to grown novel crops as future providers of fuel.

Two Welsh colleges, Coleg Gelli Aur and Coleg Glynllifon, are conducting trials of biomass crops as part of a demonstration exercise to show farmers the benefits of incorporating grass energy crops into their businesses.

The demonstrations, funded through the Farming Connect Centre for Alternative Land Uses (CALU) at Bangor University, will show farmers energy grass crops that are considered to be suitable for Wales.

CALU believes that the sites will contribute towards raising the awareness of energy grasses to potential energy consumers such as local councils and businesses. It is planned to hold open events once the crops are established in late summer.

Three crops were planted – Miscanthus, Reed Canary Grass and Switch Grass.

Miscanthus is already a commercial reality for farmers in the east of England, and could easily be for Wales too, as it is considered to have most potential on good arable sites.

The crop is planted as a rhizome and should grow to a height of a meter or so in the first year. The next year and subsequent years should see much higher yields, in the region of 15 tonnes a hectare.

The other grasses, while less common in the UK, and lower yielding, are cheaper to establish as they are seeded rather than rhizomatous.

“Reed Cary Grass is a perennial grass native to the UK and is also widely distributed from temperate to sub-tropical regions,” explains Dr Rebecca Heaton on behalf of CALU.

“The crop has been investigated in England, Sweden and Finland as a potential energy crop as it has high potential yield and winter hardiness.

“Switchgrass is a perennial grass native to North America. The crop has been developed by the United States Department of Energy as a model energy crop, as it has several characteristics that make it a suitable biomass crop, including high potential yield, low nutrient demand and efficient water use.”

On marginal sites, both Reed Canary Grass and Switchgrass may be higher yielding than Miscanthus.

“For farmers, there are a number of benefits of growing energy crops,” adds Dr Heaton. “They can be grown on set-aside land, and if not, they are still eligible under the Single Farm Payment, and receive an additional €45 per hectare Energy Crop payment when not grown on set-aside land.”

So far markets for energy crops in Wales have been slower to develop then those in England, but there is interest in Pembrokeshire for large and medium scale heating systems - such as schools, community halls, with farmers forming fuel supply co-operatives.

Also, from April 1, 2009, under the renewable obligations directive, coal power stations burning biomass will be required to supply 25 per cent of biomass fuel from dedicated energy crops. This proportion will rise to 50 per cent in 2010 and 75 per cent the following year, before the directive comes to an end in 2016. With electricity companies facing penalties if they do not meet these targets, the introduction of this legislation presents an opportunity for agriculture.

Meanwhile, a more novel use of energy crops is being investigated by the Carmarthenshire Hydrogen Energy group. Led by Carmarthenshire Energy Agency the group aims to ferment locally grown energy crops to produce hydrogen, for subsequent use as a fuel for transport or heating. This project is still in its conceptual stages, but could be a real end-use for energy crops in the medium term.

CALU has been developed under the Farming Connect scheme which helps farming families make the most of their businesses by means of a range of services including business and specialist agricultural advice, training, information, and investment grants.

Focusing specifically on the areas of horticulture, novel crops, alternative livestock, biomass and farm woodlands, CALU is based at the University of Wales Bangor, and aims to become the focal point for technology transfer across a range of non-commodity enterprises. The Centre also provides support to existing horticultural firms keen to develop their businesses.

It is run under the directorship of Professor Gareth Edwards-Jones from the university’s School of Agricultural and Forest Sciences in partnership with ADAS Wales, the Welsh College of Horticulture at Northop, Coed Cymru, and Coleg Llysfasi.

CALU is one of five Wales-wide Farming Connect specialist Development Centres – the others being for the dairy, beef and sheep, organic and grassland sectors.

For more information about CALU’s services ring 01248 680450 or email calu@bangor.ac.uk

Farming Connect offers a range of services to help farming families adapt to changes in the industry, become more sustainable and better understand the market place. The Welsh Assembly Government, Welsh Development Agency and other partners deliver these services. It is supported by the European Agriculture Guidance and Guarantee Fund of the European Union. For more information about Farming Connect telephone 08456 000813 or visit www.farmingconnect.co.uk.