POSITIVE FUTURE FOR WOOD FUEL (15/08/06)

An innovative new website which will act as a one stop shop for practical information on woodfuel has been launched today August 15, by Scottish Forestry Minister, Rhona Brankin, during a visit to the Western Isles.

The site - www.usewoodfuel.co.uk - is the first website of its kind in Scotland and provides advice for anyone interested in woodfuel such as what type of boiler technology is available, where to locate suppliers, and what types of woodfuel are available. It also provides information for businesses interested in supplying fuel, tips to develop local markets, and details the processes involved in producing different woodfuel types.

Scottish Forestry Minister, Rhona Brankin, said: "When you mention renewable energy we tend to think about wind turbines and wave power for electricity generation, but there is an increasing awareness of the contribution that wood as a fuel can make to helping our environment. Wood fuel can supply energy on demand, making it an ideal source of heat as well as power.

"Woodfuel is a local, renewable source of energy whether for an individual house or generating energy for a whole community and it is already heating homes, schools, community centres and businesses across Scotland. A network of suppliers including foresters, farmers, sawmills and estates are diversifying into woodfuel supply, creating a new source of income for rural areas."

As well as highlighting the promotion of woodfuel as a renewable, clean form of energy, the website contains details of grant assistance or free one-to-one advice from Forestry Commission Scotland's Woodfuel Information Officers.
During her visit to the Western Isles, Ms Brankin learned of three applications from schemes in the Western Isles, that are specifically designed to grow the raw material (biomass) that can be marketed as woodfuel.

The applications are currently being considered by the Commission's local office. Comhairle Nan Eilean (the Western Isles Council) and the Commission are currently working together to look at opportunities for small scale woodfuel developments on the Western Isles. Ms Brankin also visited a scheme in Leurbost planted by a local crofter with help from the Commission’s special 'Locational Premium' grant for the Western Isles.

Ms Brankin continued: "Wood is the most plentiful source of renewable energy in Scotland and it has the potential to become a sustainable and environmentally sound solution to the problem of supplying cost-effective energy. "It is exciting to see interest building for woodfuel and to see the start of a new innovative market in the Western Isles."

"The website will be a valuable resource to areas such as the Western Isles by boosting the number of people interested in using woodfuel and highlighting the potential benefits involved. Woodfuel use helps to alleviate the 'greenhouse effect' on the world's climate created by the build up in the atmosphere of gases like carbon dioxide, because the trees planted to replace those used for woodfuel re-absorb the carbon dioxide produced by wood-burning power stations in a sustainable cycle".