Other News

So-called ‘biostations’ could pop up over Romania following a discussion between anaerobic specialists in Germany and the Netherlands, as part of a European project. Romania is moving away from disposing of animal waste which could be used to generate electricity. Biostations have been operating for eight years in Germany and the Netherlands. Vice president of the National Medical…
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Savvas Seimanidis has been unanimously re-elected as EREF President for the next two years by members of the European Renewable Energies Federation (EREF). Upon his renewed appointment, Seimanidis said: “We agree with EU Vice-President Maroš Šefcovic that 2016 will be the year of delivery for the Energy Union. This means setting the proper foundation for a stable, secure,…
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Biobean, a UK-based company that turns was coffee grounds into advanced biofuels, has announced that it is turning to crowdfunding to help develop its new product – Coffee Logs. Coffee Logs are biomass briquettes derived from waste coffee grounds and according to the company offer a clean, cheap, local and sustainable alternative to dirty, imported fuels, often burning hotter…
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  China Everbright International has won a bid to build a 750 tonne per day waste-to-energy facility in Shandgon, China. In a statement, the company explained that Jinan, the capital of Shandong province, is the political, economic and cultural centre of the province with increasing environmental requirements and waste management needs. The Shandong Jinan No Two Household Waste Integrated…
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Wood-burning stoves could account for 10% of the UK Government’s carbon reduction targets by 2020, according to a UK-based trade body. The Stove Industry Alliance (SIA) said that wood-burning stoves also have the potential to produce 25% of the government’s domestic renewable heat energy target by 2020. According to the trade body, wood-burning stoves have experienced a huge upsurge…
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More countries around the world are investing in renewable energy and last year spent more than green sources than on new coal and gas-fired power plants, according to a new report. The report is entitled Renewables 2016 Global Status and was published by REN 21, an international body backed by the UN. An estimated 147 gigawatts (GW) of new renewable power generation was added globally in…
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Over the past few months, tense debates on the sustainability of biomass used for energy production have arisen. Most stakeholders seem to agree on one point: an EU policy to ensure the sustainability of biomass is required. It is needed to secure investments, to set a level playing field among Member States and to provide answers to questions and concerns from society on future bioenergy…
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The Pee Power urinal that turns pee into electricity - designed by researchers at the University of the West of England (UWE Bristol) - is taking centre stage in the Stone Circle at Glastonbury Festival for the second year running. The team of researchers from UWE Bristol, and workers from Oxfam and Dunster House shelter manufacturers, are using the festival as a field trial in advance of planned…
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Scientists from ten institutions worldwide are challenging the notion that growing bioenergy crops hinders food production, which they see as harmful to new projects Traditionally in the “food v. fuel” debate, bioenergy crops have been blamed for food shortages as the land used for growing them could have been instead harnessed for food production. But a new report, titled Reconciling…
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Plans have been approved for an anaerobic digestion plant to be built near Grantham, UK, which will power thousands of homes using manure, according to media reports. According to the Grantham Journal, Lincolnshire County Council recently gave the green light to the scheme, which faced objections over concerns that the building would be a blot on the landscape, the increased HGV traffic in the…
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Bioenergy academia and industry representatives, who attended the European Biomass Conference & Exhibition (EUBCE), are calling on European policy makers and the media to reconsider their approach to bioenergy. The EUBCE event recently took place in Amsterdam, the Netherlands (6-9 June, 2016) and was attended by international bioenergy institutions and scientific organisations, among…
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Strong bioenergy demand without strong environmental policies will lead to increase pressure on forests both in and outside of Europe, according to a new study. The new study, conducted by researchers at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) and partner organisations for the European Commission (EC), explores the potential impacts, interactions, and implications for…
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The European Union (EU) has funded a project based in Brazil, which aims to harness the combined power of positioning and reflectometry technology in order to create a low-cost, unmanned aerial platform for biomass mapping of the Brazilian Amazon forest. Not only is Brazil a large country but much of it is covered by the dense Amazon rainforest. In a statement on the European Commission website,…
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Biffa, one of the UK’s leading integrated waste management companies, has announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire Cory Environmental’s municipal, industrial and commercial collection business for £13.5 million. For the year ended 31 December, 2015 Cory Environmental reported total revenues of around £34 million. The business employs a total of 800 people. In…
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