Webinar 17 – Running a successful bioenergy business in rural Ireland – The Cotter Bros story

This webinar showcases the Cotter Brother’s story and how they have developed a successful firewood business in rural Ireland. ‘Cotter Bros Firewood’ are a member of the Wood Fuel Quality Assurance Scheme (WFQA) and are selling quality, certified wood products to a growing market in the Midwest. Nick Cotter presents on the future challenges and opportunities for firewood and bioenergy. He talked about how their firewood business has developed and how they are now exploring other opportunities to grow their business and contribute to the development of the rural economy in the area.

LIVE PRESENTATION HERE

Webinar Speaker

Nick Cotter

Nick started up the ‘Cotter Bros Firewood’ business with his brother Jack when they were 11 and 13 respectively. Nick is now a student of Law and Business at University College Cork, he has recently started his third company with his brother Jack, Cotter Agritech. Their Cotter Crate lamb handling system won ‘Best Agri-Engineering Start-up’ and the Alfred Cox Founder’s Perpetual Trophy for the ‘Best Overall Start-up’ at the 2019 Enterprise Ireland Innovation Awards at the Ploughing Championships. Nick and Jack also won the 2019 Engineers Ireland Student Innovator of the Year Award. They are now both working on bringing these new innovations to market as well and continually driving the firewood business.

An updated proposal from IrBEA to regulate the moisture content of firewood for sale in Ireland

The Irish Bioenergy Association (IrBEA) has previously submitted an outline proposal to the Department of Communications, Climate Action and the Environment for the regulation by the Department of the moisture content of firewood for sale for domestic combustion. This document updates the previous proposal and suggests a pathway and timeline for regulation of the moisture content of firewood for sale.
The objectives of the proposal to regulate the moisture content of firewood for sale are:

  • To contribute to improving air quality in Ireland in the context of the developing Clean air
    Strategy, the recent EPA report Air Quality in Ireland 20181, and the CAFE Directive, and
  • To enable the continued use of sustainable firewood fuel in domestic heating as a replacement
    for fossil fuel and thereby contribute to climate change mitigation.

Read the full document here

Webinar 16: Biochar – Addressing the Climate & Environmental Challenges

Recent years have seen a surge in interest in what is now commonly known as biochar.
Biochar is a carbon rich solid material produced by thermally converting biomass in a low oxygen environment.

In this webinar, we looked at some of the basics behind biochar, at questions such as:

• What is it?
• How is it made?
• What can it be used for?
• How can it aid in addressing the climate and environmental challenges?

Biochar is of particular interest to the following sectors:
• Agriculture, forestry and the farming community (soil amendments, animal feed additives, slurry additives, biofertiliser)
• Waste water management (filtration medium)
• Horticulture (growing medium, peat replacement, soil additives)
• Bioenergy sector (biomass fuels, AD plants)
• Construction industry (asphalt)

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Webinar Speaker

Stephen McCormack 

THREE C Project Officer, IrBEA


Stephen McCormack is the THREE C Project Officer with IrBEA. He has a degree in Environmental Science from IT Sligo and is currently undertaking his Masters in Environmental Sustainability through University College Dublin. He joined the team at IrBEA in 2020, having previously worked alongside them in his role as Project Officer with the Western Development Commission on the RE-DIRECT project, a transnational Interreg North West Europe project that looked at the viability of establishing indigenous biochar and activated carbon production from under-utilised biomass resources. Now working on the follow on project, THREE C (Creating the Carbon Circular Economy), he is tasked with engaging with the growing number of stakeholders looking to further the development of the sector here in Ireland.

LIVE PRESENTATION HERE

IrBEA responds to consultation on the Draft National Air Pollution Control Programme

IrBEA responded to the Department of Environment, Climate Action and Communication  consultation on the draft National Air Pollution Control Programme (NAPCP) before the January 22nd deadline. The main points raised in the IrBEA response were as follows:

  • The draft NAPCP recognises proposals for roll out of a large number of heat pumps in domestic homes over the next decade. IrBEA highlighted that heat pumps will only be able to partially decarbonise our economy considering the cost of retrofit, availability of labour and age profile / energy efficiency of the housing stock across the country.
  • The decarbonisation of heat will need to include wood fuel systems in domestic houses, particularly in larger and older houses and those in rural areas.
  • Less than half of Irelands heating requirements are at temperatures suitable for heat pumps.
  • Any heating above 60OC will need to be decarbonised using a technology other than a heat pumps and bioenergy has a major part to play at all temperatures.
  • The use of properly designed appliances for wood fuels have a dramatic impact on particulate emissions
  • The draft NAPCP notes that solid fuels have traditionally been a source of particulate matter. In the report, it notes that from 1990 to 2018, air quality control measures have resulted in a reduction of particulate matter from residential heating by 73%. It noted that in the same period of time all other sources have reduced their emissions by approximately 30%.
  • To date firewood is not regulated and the market contains large quantities of wet firewood.
  • We highlighted that IrBEA is calling for the regulation of firewood to ensure that only dry firewood is sold on the market. We envisage significant reductions of emissions if firewood is regulated.
  • The draft NAPCP includes additional measures. IrBEA noted that the measures listed do not include some measures which have a significant impact in reducing particulate matter and other harmful emissions to air from solid fuel combustion. We propose that additional measures include:
  1. Regulation of wood fuels in Ireland to meet European standards.
  2. Regulation of firewood ensuring that no firewood may be placed for sale where the moisture content is above 20%.
  3. Regulations ensuring that only Eco-design appliances may be offered for sale in Ireland.
  • Specifically, we noted that section 4.2.2.3 listed wood as a major source of harmful emissions. We propose that this be altered to describe wet or unseasoned wood as being the major source of harmful emissions. We ask that the document recognise the positive aspects of properly dried wood fuel on air emissions.
  • We noted that fossil gas fuel is described in the document as a clean fuel. While in terms of localised air emissions fossil gas may be considered “clean”, we propose that the document recognises that fossil gas is not clean in the global context neither in terms of its point of extraction nor in terms of its overall impact on the climate
  • We object to the document proposing that fossil gas be considered as an ongoing or future solution to air emissions.

For further details on the IrBEA submission please contact IrBEA Technical Executive, Noel Gavigan at noelgavigan@irbea.org.

Full submission can be found here