| Man started to use biomass for energy on the | | | | food crops. This could be a bad thing for the |
| day that our ancestors discovered fire, and | | | | poor, if the cost of food rose. So where can |
| used it for cooking. Biomass is actually just | | | | we find sustainable renewable biomass without |
| another word for biological-mass. Biomass is | | | | taking up good food producing farmland? Well, |
| anything that has been grown or has lived, | | | | as we hinted earlier there is a huge, largely |
| except for fossil fuels (coal, oil, natural | | | | untapped source of biomass, in the waste |
| gas etc). Fossil fuels were of course created | | | | produced by modern society. Why not use that? |
| by the decay of living organisms many | | | | (Some purists would say that some waste - |
| millennia ago in pre-history and are biomass | | | | like plastics is made from fossil fuel (oil) |
| in that sense, but these are not included | | | | sources. I would respond that these should, |
| within the term 'biomass' as used by | | | | in principle, be removed from the biomass |
| renewable energy experts. So, taking a broad | | | | before use, and recycled.) Biomass can also |
| view of man's history, he has used very few | | | | be separated at source by the public by the |
| energy sources other than biomass for energy | | | | rapidly increasing number of councils which |
| over eons of time, and while man did only use | | | | provide a separate collection for biowaste, |
| biomass, mankind had only a small and | | | | including food waste which is the highest |
| sustainable impact on the climate. The | | | | heat producing waste of them all when burnt |
| situation has changed completely now that we | | | | or digested, and these days comprises between |
| realize that the use of fossil fuels cannot | | | | 15% and 25% of all household (domestic) waste |
| go on forever as demand is so high now, and | | | | by weight. Western societies do throw away an |
| many believe that very soon we shall begin to | | | | awful lot of food, and in many nations the |
| find that the rate of discovery of oil fossil | | | | amount of food discarded is continuing to |
| fuel for energy use diminishes quite rapidly | | | | rise, although overall tonnages of waste |
| anyway. So, whether we like it or not we are | | | | created by the public have nearly stabilised. |
| going to have to use these energy sources | | | | So society must now rediscover biomass as a |
| from the past. But, don't be negative about | | | | significant energy source - in fact our |
| it. There are huge opportunities for | | | | newest energy source! We think that we have |
| individuals and businesses to development and | | | | progressed far away from the simple log fire, |
| profit from this brand new era of renewable | | | | which used biomass. In truth we have not. By |
| power. Biomass takes many forms, some of the | | | | using fossil fuels in massive quantities, we |
| most well known are wood, straw, biowaste, | | | | have simply been raiding the bank, we have |
| wood chip, waste paper, organic slurries from | | | | been stealing oxygen from the earth's |
| the processing of foodstuffs, livestock | | | | atmosphere and replacing the oxygen with the |
| farming, sewage treatment, chicken litter | | | | greenhouse gas, and global warming gas, |
| etc. I guess that most of us can think of a | | | | carbon dioxide. We simply cannot go on doing |
| hundred or more examples of biomass with a | | | | this without reaping climate change disaster |
| little thought, and they can all be burnt, or | | | | on the earth. We can change our ways. It is |
| fermented and digested to provide energy. | | | | possible, but we need thoughtful people like |
| They all contain energy from the sun, which | | | | you. People who read articles like this one, |
| was bound up into their carbon chemistry | | | | to understand this truth, and appreciate the |
| while they were alive, and that energy can be | | | | great urgency for change to renewable fuels. |
| released for man's use without increasing the | | | | The planet needs all of us that do understand |
| net additional carbon dioxide (greenhouse | | | | to keep ourselves informed and to influence |
| gas) burden on our planet, as long as we | | | | our friends, and persuade them of the value |
| continually replant, breed and re-grow | | | | of using biomass as a fuel, and in particular |
| replacement biomass sources in place of those | | | | waste biomass is one of the best ways of |
| we use. So biomass can also be grown as a | | | | doing this. If you want to be one of those |
| crop for use as fuel. If the biomass is to be | | | | that understand renewable energy and what the |
| grown it will need to be selected to be of | | | | adoption of the newest renewables can do to |
| high calorific value (give of lots of heat | | | | help future generations to survive climate |
| when burnt), grow fast, need little | | | | change, please do visit our web site. |
| fertilizing or watering, require low power | | | | |
| requirements during growing and be cheaply | | | | Our web site is The Renewable Energy News |
| harvested. However, the growing of biomass to | | | | Blog. In particular we think that you would |
| use as biofuel on a large scale would have | | | | find this article interesting Making Your Own |
| the effect of reducing available land for | | | | Biodiesel. |