Ex-NFU leader to head biomass taskforce
Sir Ben Gill, ex-president of the National Farmers Union, will head up a new taskforce investigating why biomass energy has failed to take off in Britain, it was announced today.
Food and Farming Minister Lord Whitty, announcing the appointment, said Sir Ben and his team would be tasked with finding out how to overcome the barriers to establishing a viable market in biomass energy.
“We want to make it easier for producers to get their biomass out of the fields and forests and into the market, to make it a viable alternative energy source.
“Ben Gill and his team will help us… to maximise the contribution of biomass to our energy goals.”
Biomass technology uses crops such as willow, poplar and grasses and woodfuel from forests to generate energy and heat. It produces little carbon and the Government believes it could help achieve targets on carbon emissions.
Speaking today at a press conference in London, Sir Ben emphasised that biomass had struggled to make progress in the past.
“Its potential is clear…This study is about finding solutions and that’s what we intend to deliver.”
Lord Whitty also unveiled a new £3.5 million bio-energy infrastructure scheme that will make grants to help people harvest, store and supply biomass to be turned into energy.
The Government is committed to 15 per cent of its energy resources from renewable sources by 2012. Much of the focus up until now has been on the potential contribution from renewable energy, but some campaigners believe that the returns from biomass technology could be potentially greater.
