transformational adaptation for the wheatbelt: energy tree cropping - richard bennett
TRANSCRIPT
Richard Bennett; Amir Abadi; Kevin Goss
Transformational adaptation for the wheatbelt: energy tree cropping
Australian mallee system
Mallee system 1 - production
Belts of coppicing, drought tolerant trees• Integration with dominant
grain, meat and wool enterprises
• Coppicing trees allow regular and repeated harvests (3-5yrs)
Contractors harvest and transport wood biomass
• harvesting & chipping at >60 T/h
• economic transport distance ~50 km
Photo of harvester prototype in action
Mallee system 2 – harvest/transp.
Biomass processing centres• renewable energy• fuel• char • oil
Mallee system 3 - processing
Energy source that is:• C neutral to C positive • Base-load – complements wind and solar
The path to an industry
A viable industry before 2025
Generating 176MW
Offsetting 9.1 Mt CO2-e
The path to an industry
The path to an industry-- cost of supply --
The path to an industry-- cost of supply --
The path to an industry-- cost of supply --
The path to an industry-- cost of supply --
The path to an industry-- cost of supply --
The path to an industry-- cost of supply --
The path to an industry-- cost of supply --
The path to an industry-- scale of demand --
The path to an industry-- scale of demand --
The path to an industry-- scale of demand --
Challenges to industry development
Cost of harvest and haulage largest hurdle–Prototype harvesters under development
– Initial cost biomass cost offsets?
Ongoing sustainability considerations
– early reliance on stored soil moisture / nutrients
– productivity decline long-term
– Net C balance of roots
Transforming agriculture Environmental benefits to farms and regions
• Provide salinity and biodiversity benefits• Smart belt placement can improve water
and nutrient balances• Neutral or positive carbon balance
• Viable industry will displace fossil fuels emissions to 1.3 MT CO2-e / year
Transforming agriculture Economic benefits to farmers
• Improved animal welfare – shelter from elements
• Diversify farm incomes – complement existing
agriculture
• Maintains cash flow – regular harvests
• Stability of yield – lower year on year risk
• Higher total productivity – use of excess resources
Transforming agriculture Economic benefits to regions
• New regional industries – harvesting, transporting
and processing
• Provide local base-load power to regional areas
reducing transmission losses
• Improved energy security
• Mallees for bioenergy will be strategically important
for Australia's renewable energy future
Key references
• Future Farm Industries CRC (2010) Energy Tree Crops: Renewable energy from biomass could be the driver to large scale adoption of woody crops and to structural improvement to dryland agricultural systems in Australia
• Bartle, J. Abadi, A. (2010) Toward Sustainable Production of Second Generation Bioenergy Feedstocks. Energy Fuels 24, 2–9.