How Bioenergy Can Help Businesses Achieve Net Zero

Net Zero is a concept that’s gained significant traction in the world of politics and business. Simply put, an organisation which has achieved ‘net zero’ emissions is one that’s taking more carbon out of the atmosphere than it’s putting in.

The race to Net Zero

The United Nations has sought to encourage this trend through its ‘Race to Zero’ campaign, which requires that participants identify their current emissions, and then execute a plan to deal with them, publishing their results along the way.

In practice, this means limiting emissions as much as possible, and then investing in offsetting to cover the rest. This might mean planting more trees to suck up the carbon in the long term. But there are other methods, too, and Bioenergy is among the most promising.

bioenergy and net zero

What is Bioenergy?

Bioenergy is energy that we obtain through biomass. If you’re burning timber, plants and food waste, then you’re generating Bioenergy. But burning is just one method of getting at the energy stored in living things: you might also store biomass in a sealed tank, so that it releases methane gas, which can be burned. Methane gas is much more damaging than carbon dioxide, and so storing the biomatter in a tank, rather than burying it, can be a net benefit for the environment, especially when compared with the alternative options.

Bioenergy has the advantage of being available everywhere in the world, which would make it a more secure form of energy that’s less vulnerable to changes in global supply. This goes especially if it’s part of a diversified range of energy sources.

Bioenergy capacity

One of the problems with Bioenergy is that it requires large amounts of land and water to be feasible. This is land that might be put to use elsewhere – in maintaining large forests and growing plants for human (and animal) consumption.

biomass energy in pakistan

Of course, Bioenergy doesn’t need to entirely supplant fossil fuels in order to be useful. It can instead form a valuable part of a diversified green energy economy. It has the advantage over wind and solar in that the biomass can be stored – albeit temporarily. As such, we might see it used to smooth out any interruptions in power that come about when the wind stops blowing or the sun stops shining. A reputable energy transition law firm will usually recommend the technology alongside a suite of others, including solar, wind, carbon capture, and ‘new’ nuclear.

Provided that we’re planting as much biomass as we’re burning, this practice is effectively infinitely renewable and carbon-neutral. So, a firm might invest a given amount in energy from biomass, and then invest the rest in planting new trees to replace the ones being burned, in order to achieve its Net Zero ambitions.

What Every Student Need to Know About Bioenergy Technologies

The problem of pollution is a severe and crucial one. As the number of people living on Earth is constantly increasing, so does the strain we put on Earth. There is a higher and higher demand for products and services for people, some that generate high amounts of waste. Plastic pollution is a pressing problem, especially because it is estimated that by 2050, there will be more plastic than fish in the seas. But plastic is not the only waste humanity is generating.

We put a strain on this planet not only for meeting our food demands but also for making our lifestyles as easy as possible. Switching to renewable sources of energy is another solution to combat the effects of climate change and slow them. Bioenergy is a rather new field, but one that is gaining more and more momentum.

bioenergy technologies

So, which are the things you need to know, study, and learn about bioenergy technologies that will make your life better?

Bioenergy Technologies Rely on Biomass

Switching to using green technologies is one of the things you could do to lower your carbon footprint and protect the Earth. These kinds of technologies, which protect the Earth and reduce the strain put on it, are called biotechnologies. They are used to generate bioenergy by burning biomass. And it seems that these technologies are gaining more momentum, as more people begin to be aware of the impact of their choices on the environment.

Humanity has always lived in close communion with nature. If people protect nature, they contribute to their overall happiness. Why? Because we rely on nature to get food, to have a shelter, and why not, to relax and discover some of its marvels. When we pollute it, we are in fact poisoning ourselves. Chemicals enter the soil and poison the crops, which are then eaten by animals and, lastly, by people.

There are many books and essay examples on this topic, written by any writing service. And all highlight that it is crucial to shift to sources of energy that produce less waste and protect the environment more. Burning biomass (plant or animal material) to produce energy is one of the most effective and eco-friendly ways to meet humanity’s demand for energy.

Burning biomass produces heat, and it can also be used to produce energy and biofuel. Biomass is represented by agricultural residues such as corn cobs or wood chips. Every organic material can be considered biomass and can thus contribute to more climate-friendly goals.

biomass-gasifier

The Rise of a College Recycling Program

Every university welcomes its students every year and promises to offer the best learning experience. The field of bioenergy caught the interest of many youngsters, who want to study more about the innovations in bioenergy. Learning about this technology from books is one of the ways you can do this. But there are many essay examples by essay services on this topic that could shed a light on this topic more.

At the same time, more and more universities acknowledge the need for a college recycling program. Some of them have already implemented one and they encourage students to become more aware of their habits and increase the recycling rate within the campus.

Because climate change, global warming, and pollution are so pressing issues of today’s world, more and more students are asked to write essays and find solutions for these problems. Biomass energy is one of the solutions that could help people combat the effects of climate change, along with college recycling programs. If you want to write more about this topic, you can find here https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/technology/ free essay examples to inspire you.

More and more universities are opening up their research programs in this area, and it becomes crucial to have more and more experts in this field. Students need to be aware of the current technological advancements in the field of bioenergy. This will enable them to come up with innovative solutions for a healthier planet.

Ending Note

There are currently many bioenergy technologies that are popular in the world. Relying on biomass to produce heat and then electricity seems to be a pretty good idea. This would also reduce the waste humanity is generating, protecting the environment, and eliminating pollution. Of course, we still have a long way to go. This is why many universities are opening up their research programs in this field and inviting students to be part of this journey.

Bioenergy might be the technology of the future and students could be the ones that are nurturing the growth of this field. Not only for green energies and technologies but also for recycling programs that should be in place. Humanity has always lived in strong communion with nature and it offered us so much. Protecting it is important because this is the only home we have.

Asbestos Related Illnesses in the Bioenergy Industry

When we think of asbestos, we usually picture old, condemned buildings filled with harmful asbestos-based insulation, but this isn’t always the case.

Since 1989, the use of asbestos has been banned in construction work in the UK and many buildings which contain this harmful substance, are being replaced or made safe.

While this is of course, good news, these buildings are not the only source of asbestos and in this article, we’ll be examining the rising cases of mesothelioma compensation claims by bioenergy industry employees.

Asbestos Related Illnesses in the Bioenergy Industry

What is Asbestos?

A naturally occurring substance, asbestos is a fibrous silicate mineral made up of long, thin microscopic fibrous crystals.  When dormant, asbestos can be relatively harmless but, the danger occurs when fibrils are released into the atmosphere and inhaled by humans.

Inhalation of asbestos can lead to serious diseases such as COPD and mesothelioma, a form of lung cancer which is associated with asbestos and which is almost always terminal.

In recent years, concerns have been growing over the number of bio energy employees who have been diagnosed with this devastating disease

What is Bioenergy?

Bioenergy is the term used for the generation of gas and electricity which is renewable and which causes less harm to the planet’s resources than other, more traditional methods which use coal, oil, natural gas and nuclear energy.

Bioenergy methods use organic matter such as food waste to create a flexible energy source. Wet feedstocks like food and other organise material is placed into sealed tanks and allowed to rot. This creates methane gas which can then be collected and burned to generate electricity. Dry materials like wood pellets are also burned in a furnace to boil water, create steam and thereby generate electricity.

Although bioenergy does produce carbon dioxide and release it into the atmosphere, it does so only at the rate at which the organic matter absorbed the carbon dioxide while growing. This makes it greener and more sustainable.

Energy crops are grown in the UK specifically for the use of producing bio-energy. There are currently 1855 bioenergy plants in the UK, employing around 35,000 people.

What’s the Connection Between Bioenergy and Mesothelioma?

At the beginning of this article, we mentioned that old buildings containing asbestos insulation are not the only places that asbestos can be found. In fact, at any given time, the air we breathe can contain asbestos.

However, this is usually at incredibly low levels of between 0.00001 to 0.0001 fibers per millimeter of air and does not pose any danger to human health. Having said that, many doctors will disagree, as many will argue that no level of asbestos is ever safe.

On average, it’s thought that the ‘danger zone’ for asbestos stands at around 1%. An individual who has been exposed to dangerous levels of asbestos may be unaware of this as symptoms will often not present themselves until ten or even twenty years after the exposure.

Asbestos occurs naturally in rocks, particularly altered ultramafic rocks and some mafic rocks. Asbestos can also occur naturally in some kinds of soil.

The Connection Between Plant Workers and Illnesses

It has been discovered that, in some instances, dedicated bioenergy crop sites have been created on land where the soil has been contaminated by asbestos, either naturally or through previous commercial endeavors.

Employees who are responsible for working with these crops including planting, nurturing and picking, become vulnerable to high levels of asbestos. When inhaled, this level of asbestos can be harmful to health and has led to mesothelioma.

As well as soil contamination, the process of converting food and organic waste into energy such as creating methane, can produce small amounts of asbestos. Although these may be minimal, continued exposure over time can lead to health problems in workers, including mesothelioma.

Unfortunately, mesothelioma is often caught late and on average, the life expectancy of the patient from the point of diagnosis is only between 4 and 18 months.

anaerobic_digestion_plant

Asbestos Claims in the UK

In 2020, there were 17,023 asbestos compensation claims, with payouts of around £233.9 million. Despite almost forty years passing since the prohibition of asbestos in buildings, some UK solicitors report that claims are increasing rather than dwindling as victims seek financial compensation after being diagnosed with asbestos related diseases.

While some of these claims are made by former employees of old-style power plants, more and more are now emerging from bioenergy facilities.

Further Risk Assessments Need to be Improved by Employers…

In 2022, it’s reasonable to assume that, when you start a new job, the last thing on your mind is the risk of coming into contact with asbestos. Many of the bioenergy employees who are now making claims are justifiably angry about the fact that they were never made aware of any risk during the course of their work.

While this is devastating, it’s not necessarily evidence of sinister dealings by bioenergy companies. In many cases, employers did not inform their employees of risk for the simple reason that they weren’t aware of it themselves.

There’s no doubt that bioenergy is the future as we continue to move away from environment harming processes. However, while we call this progress in some ways, employers will need to examine all of their processes and materials to identify any possible risks to employees, in order to prevent unnecessary illness and death.