Minister urges biomass energy cooperation

Scottish forestry minister Rhona Brankin has called on the forestry and agriculture industries to work together to seize opportunities afforded by biomass production.
Ms Brankin , addressing the two day “ Biomass production – Energy from Forestry and Agriculture” conference on November 21-22, said Scotland needed a more integrated approach to help realise the full potential of biomass as an energy source.

The Elgin conference, attended by more than 100 delegates from 11 European countries, focused on Scottish and EU policy and the opportunities to develop biomass output from forest and agricultural crops.
Ms Brankin said Scotland intended to grow the production of electricity generated from renewable sources to 40% by 2020 and the government is working with stakeholders to develop a biomass support scheme.

Farmers are also being supported to establish short-rotation coppice energy crops, while low-cost community heating projects are being encouraged.

BIOMASS SUMMIT BRINGS OFF-SEASON VISITOR BOOST

Elgin's tourism industry has received a boost as more than 100 delegates arrived in the town for a prestigious international conference.
Hotels and restaurants in the area have seen an increase in bookings during the two-day biomass summit at a traditionally quiet time of year.
Delegates began arriving at the weekend and many will stay on until tomorrow before heading for home.
The Eight Acres Hotel, where the conference is being staged, has been the main beneficiary, although other hotels and guesthouses in Elgin have also seen an increase in bookings.
Donald Thain, operations manager at the Eight Acres, said: "We are fully booked and 99% of that is due to the conference delegates.
"It is welcome business at this time of year. The period towards the end of November is usually fairly quiet before we get into the Christmas rush."

On the first day of the conference yesterday, the forestry and farming industries were urged to work together to take advantage of emerging opportunities for the production of green energy.
Deputy Minister for the Environment and Rural Affairs, Rhona Brankin, said the development of biomass plants would go a long way towards meeting renewable energy targets set by the Scottish Executive.

Ms Brankin told the conference, which is focusing on the potential of using timber and agricultural crops as a source of energy, that biomass was important to the development of rural Scotland.
She said Scotland had recognised the need to act quickly to do everything possible to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
"The Scottish Executive supports many initiatives designed to encourage and facilitate the delivery of increased biomass usage as an alternative energy source," said Ms Brankin.
"We have set targets to increase the production of electricity generated from renewable sources to 40% by 2020, and we are working with stakeholders to hammer out details for the development of a Scottish biomass support scheme."

Ms Brankin said low-cost community heating projects - particularly important in rural parts of Scotland - were being encouraged, but a great deal still had to be learned and a more integrated approach across Scotland would help to realise the full potential of biomass as an energy source.
She told delegates: "Bio-energy provides new opportunities for agriculture and forestry to work together, and this conference aims to stimulate closer co-operation.
"You have the chance to make changes in energy production that will engage and benefit even the smallest of communities in Scotland.
"With our expanding forest resource and extensive agricultural sector, I urge delegates to engage with each other and work towards the development of a better, greener future delivering greater benefits to rural communities."

Conference delegates include representatives from north and north-east local authorities, the Forestry Commission, the National Farmers Union Scotland and Scottish Natural Heritage.

Overseas countries represented include Finland, Iceland, Holland, Germany, Belgium and Sweden.

NORTHERN WOODHEAT TRAILBLAZERS 26TH SEPTEMBER 2005

Wood Energy enthusiasts from across Scotland met recently in Tomintoul to develop collaboration within the wood fuel supply chain at a seminar organised by Aboyne based timber co-operative DWP Harvesting and Marketing as part of the Northern WoodHeat Project.

Around 50 people from North, West, East and Central Scotland and the Borders took part in the day's events including forest owners, sawmillers, foresters from the Forestry Commission and private and voluntary sectors, contractors and consultants and delegates from Forestry and Timber Association, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Scottish Rural Property and Business Association.

Northern Woodheat Project Manager Fiona McPhie chaired the indoor session that started with a presentation by DWP Harvesting and Marketing Director Andrew Nicol on Collaborating to Develop Small and Medium Scale Woodfuel Supply Chains emphasising the need for all involved to work together to maximise the increasing opportunities within the Bioenergy Sector.

Asko Puhakka from the Finnish North Karelia Polytechnic presented Promoting Enterpreneurship and Bioenergy Utilisation- together with a second session on Energy Solutions – Making Decisions. He highlighted Finnish experience and the co-operative business models used by energy entrepreneurs in North Karelia. Hamish Walls of SAOS had outlined case study examples of Successful co-operation: case studies from Scotland and Sweden.

The presentations led on to lively group discussions before a coach was boarded to visit to the Cairn Daimh fuelwood harvesting trial site on Glenlivet Estate where Paul Webster of Technical Development branch of Forest Research gave an update on the trial’s progress to date. This was followed by a demonstration of trailer mounted and tractor mounted wood chippers.

Andrew Nicol commented "I am delighted at the enthusiastic response we have had to this seminar.  We chose the right time with increasing awareness of global warming and concern over the rising price of oil and gas.  Bioenergy provides over 60% of all renewable energy within the EU. Most of this comes from wood fuelled district heating schemes which heat whole villages and towns in Scandinavia, Austria and elsewhere. Here in the UK we have a job ahead of us to catch up."

Finnish Partners visit Scotland April 2005 

In April, a party of visitors from NCP, Metla and Josek visited Highland Birchwoods in order to meet key actors in the Scottish woodfuel industry, and to visit existing installations and harvesting sites, in order to gain a direct understanding of the current situation of the woodfuel industry in Scotland. This visit was very productive for all, and provided the necessary contacts and grounding for the Feasibility Study Scotland and the production of Northern WoodHeat’s transnational training material. 

Sites visited included the National Trust for Scotland visitor centre, Glencoe and Torren holiday cottages which are both heated by woodchip installations, and Highland Wood Energy and Woodtherm Fuels – two of Northern WoodHeat’s partners who are involved in the installation of boilers and production and delivery of woodchip - all in the Lochaber area. We visited the
 boilers at the Averon Centre, Alness and Bettyhill
 Swimming Pool, and heard about some of the problems and challenges these projects had faced, particularly in relation to quality and stability of fuel supply.    We also spent some time in Caithness where we saw the location of the planned Wick District Heating Scheme, and visited woodfuel harvesting sites which could supply it owned by both the Forestry Commission and by private landowners.


We finished the week by visiting Glenlivet to see the first of Northern WoodHeat’s harvesting and drying trials in progress.

Highland Birchwoods would like to thank everyone involved in the visits and meetings during the week for being so helpful and accommodating.

INTERNATIONAL LAUNCH FOR VILLAGE WOOD FUEL PROJECT

KEN JONES

09:00 - 11 February 2005

A Lochaber village where there are proposals to provide heating from waste timber is to host the launch of an international wood fuel project.

Northern WoodHeat, which aims to encourage the use of wood fuel resources, will bring together 16 partners from as far afield as Scotland, Iceland and Finland for the event at Kinlochleven on February 15.

The delegates from national forestry organisations, educational institutions, government agencies and commercial companies will gather at the village's community centre which is heated by its own woodfuel boiler, installed and maintained by one of the project partners, Highland Wood Energy.

Highland Council is also investigating a project which could see the Loch Leven-side community's heating and domestic hot water supplies provided by a wood fuel system.

Highland Council vice-convener Michael Foxley will make the opening address and a number of speakers will discuss the use of wood fuel from different perspectives.

Financed by the EU's Northern Periphery Programme and a range of national funding sources, the project will research and develop working woodfuel supply chains.

These will focus on areas of northern Europe where part, or all, of the woodfuel resource is unexploited but could be developed at a local scale to pave the way for a functional and sustainable wood fuel industry.

Project leaders say it could help peripheral areas of Scotland to tackle high fuel prices and difficulties with energy supply.

The National Grid is working at almost full capacity in many places, yet approximately 40% of electrical demand is for heat.

Producing heat directly from wood fuel would reduce the demand for electricity and ease the pressure on the National Grid.

A spokesman for the organisation said: "Wood is the most plentiful source of renewable energy in Scotland, but at the moment we just aren't using it.

"In the UK, the available forest resource greatly exceeds the current demand, and around 60% of this unused resource is in Scotland."

The project will test different wood fuel harvesting, production and transport techniques to determine which are economically viable at the small and medium scale, and which are most beneficial to long term forest development.

It will also encourage different business models for wood fuel supply and will include those based on estate-farm, community and co-operative facilities to ensure development of business strategies that maximise the potential for local involvement.

Fiona McPhie, Highland Birchwoods' Woodfuel project officer, said the aim was to further knowledge of how to maintain sustainable wood fuel supply chains.

It would have links with the Wick district heating scheme, which recently won recognition as the best community initiative as part of the Scottish Green Energy Awards.

The Scottish Executive's Forum for Renewable Energy last week released a report on the future of biomass technology in Scotland, which highlighted the importance of establishing a viable wood fuel supply industry.

Anyone wishing to attend the launch or find out more about the project should contact Ms McPhie on 01463 811653 or by email info@northernwoodheat.net