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Make sure to check on the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative website for more national bioenergy events as we will be updating this list!

 

 

 

VBSRBusiness Energy Action

 

Burlington, VT, March 16, 2015– Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility (VBSR)
announced that it secured funding to continue the Business Energy Action (BEA) program through 2015.  BEA works with companies to help them implement energy efficiency strategies that help to save 5% per year.

This additional funding for BEA is provided by the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative, a program of the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund.  The Vermont Bioenergy Initiative connects diversified agriculture and local renewable energy production for on-farm and community use by supporting research, technical assistance, and infrastructure development in emerging areas of bioenergy, and overall education on the benefits of renewable energy and energy efficiency.  Funding was made possible by the Office of US Senator Patrick Leahy and the US Department of Energy.

“We’re grateful for the support of Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund as we work to help Vermont businesses reduce their need for fossil fuel,” said Andrea Cohen, Executive Director of Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility.  “Business Energy Action helps businesses be not only more responsible consumers of energy, but also helps their bottom line to create a more vibrant economy here in Vermont.”

Business Energy Action is currently working with more than 80 member businesses across the state.

About VBSR

Founded in 1990, VBSR is a statewide, non-profit business association with a mission to advance business ethics that value multiple bottom lines: economic, social, and environmental. Through education, public influence, and workplace quality, VBSR strives to help 760+ members set a high standard for protecting the natural, human, and economic environments of the state’s residents, while remaining profitable. Learn more or join the cause at www.vbsr.org.






Sunflowers growing at Ekolott Farm in Newbury VT

Sunflowers growing at Ekolott Farm in Newbury VT

2014 was a busy year for the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative as we engaged in national outreach efforts to share our work connecting diversified agriculture and local renewable energy production for on-farm and community use in ways that be applicable to rural areas around the country. These rural areas are often at “the end of the pipeline” and are subject to higher and more volatile costs for energy. The Vermont Bioenergy Initiative “local production for local use” model shows that rural communities can produce some of their own energy, thereby improving their energy security and benefitting from more predictable and affordable energy prices. Any farm in any part of the country can grow and process their own fuel, using the best practices developed by the collaborating farms and UVM Extension researchers working in partnership with the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative. Funding for our program work to support research, technical assistance, and infrastructure development in emerging areas of bioenergy was secured by US Senator Patrick Leahy and the US Department of Energy.

Recent news we distributed to local, regional, and national audiences includes:

Local production for local use is biofuel model that works in Vermont.

Vermont Bioenergy Initiative releases report on grass heating energy potential in Vermont and the Northeast.

Vermont sunflowers to help provide biodiesel power.

We have worked with several regional and national publications to secure editorial specifically featuring oil crops for on-farm biodiesel and feed, and grass energy for heating.

Check out the recent interview with our UVM Extension consultant and agricultural engineer, Chris Callahan in Biofuels Journal.

Read about alternative energy innovations on the farm featuring farms a part of the Farm Fresh Fuel Project in Farming Magazine.

The Grass Energy Report we released summer 2014 was featured extensively in both Renewable Energy World and On Pasture Magazine.

Visit the Green Energy Times website for our ongoing column, Emerging Frontiers in Bioenergy and follow the Vermont Bionenergy on Twitter for current news, trends, and tweets on renewable energy in Vermont and beyond.

baling switchgrass

Baling switchgrass at Meach Cove Farm in Shelburne, Vermont. Photo Credit Vermont Bioenergy Initiative

 

Montpelier, VT – A new report evaluating grass biomass energy as a potential heating fuel has been released. Grass Energy in Vermont and the Northeast summarizes current research on the agronomy and usage potential of grass as a biofuel, and points to next steps for the region to fully commercialize this opportunity. The report was released last week by the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative, a program of the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund. The full report can be found on the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative website.

“There have been several independent assessments over the years of the various aspects of growing and burning grass for energy, but we were missing the step of linking it all together. We needed to put into one place what is currently known about grass energy, and get our remaining questions on paper,” says Sarah Galbraith, program manager of the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative. “It is very possible that grass as a heating fuel could enter into Vermont’s growing suite of renewable energy options. There are still uncertainties, but this report provides a series of recommendations and next steps for Vermont and the Northeast.”

The assessment for the report was conducted by members from Wilson Engineering Services and Ernst Conservation Seeds, and a former staff of Pennsylvania State University Cooperative Extension, who together conducted a literature review and interviews with experts in the field. The report was reviewed by the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, University of Vermont Extension, Biomass Energy Resource Center, and the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund.

Grass for biofuels grow at the UVM Hort Farm in South Burlingon, Vermont. Photo credit Vermont Bioenergy Initiative

Grass for biofuels grow at the UVM Hort Farm in South Burlingon, Vermont. Photo credit Vermont Bioenergy Initiative

Grass Energy in Vermont and the Northeast includes key recommendations on models of grass energy that will work best for Vermont. Regional and closed loop processing were two models recommended, both involving farmers growing and harvesting grass, but differing in where the grass is processed into fuel and where it is used. The regional processing model calls for aggregating grass from a 50-mile radius at a central processing facility, where the grass is made into and used as fuel, or sold to local users. The closed loop model suggests farmers growing and processing grass on-site for on-farm or community use. Other models, like mobile on-farm processing and processing fuel for the consumer pellet market have significant hurdles to overcome if they are to be successful in Vermont.

Despite hurdles in some of the models presented, the report points to grass energy being a good option overall. “Native, warm-season grasses grown as a heating fuel are a viable energy crop for Vermont farmers wishing to diversify. Once the grasses are well-established, the input costs are minimal—especially compared to corn,” states Alexander DePillis, senior agriculture development coordinator for Vermont’s Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, an instrumental partner throughout planning for and publishing the grass energy report. “Grass thermal energy has the potential to help cut Vermont’s overall fuel bills while helping us meet the overall goal of the Comprehensive Energy Plan—for Vermont to obtain 90% of its energy from renewable sources by 2050.”

Perennial grasses can be grown on marginal lands not well suited for continuous row crop production and in open rural land currently not in agricultural production. The grass energy benefits reviewed in the report include retaining energy dollars in the local community, reducing greenhouse gas emissions from heating systems, improving energy security, providing a use for marginal farmland, and reducing pollution in soil and run-off from farms. Recommendations include a concerted effort in Vermont to plant grasses for energy on extended buffer strips along Lake Champlain, thereby reducing its nutrient load. Grass is a perennial crop harvested annually that can help level the increasing demand for forest biomass, while adding water quality and wildlife benefits by controlling erosion, reducing fertilizer use and providing cover and food for migrating and nesting birds.

In 2008, the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative began to explore the potential for grasses grown in Vermont to meet a portion of the state’s heating demand and reduce the consumption of non-renewable fossil fuels. The Grass Energy in Vermont and the Northeast report was initiated by the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund to aid in strategic planning for future grass energy program directives. The Vermont Bioenergy Initiative and subsequent grass energy report are funded by appropriations from the US Department of Energy secured by the Office of Senator Patrick Leahy.

The Vermont Bioenergy Initiative (www.vermontbioenergy.com) draws the connection between diversified agriculture and local renewable energy production for on-farm and community use. Aiming to supply farm inputs and reduce fossil fuel consumption, this program supports research, technical assistance, and infrastructure development in emerging areas of bioenergy. Since 2003 the program has focused on biodiesel production and distribution for heating and transportation, oil crops for on-farm biodiesel and feed, grass for heating, and algae production for biofuels and wastewater management. The Vermont Bioenergy Initiative is a program of The Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund, a non-profit organization which provides financing, technical assistance and other resources to Vermont businesses who develop products and services and create jobs in the fields of renewable energy, and sustainable agriculture and forestry.

 

 

Green Energy Times is an independent media company that publishes and energy independent website and newspaper. The power used to design the print publication and operate the website is completely off-the-grid and solar powered. Green Energy Times publishes all ranges of renewable energy and climate action news and articles from across Vermont and the region.

The Vermont Bioenergy is pleased to be authoring a regular column entitled Emerging Frontiers in Bioenergy. We plan to share each upcoming article on the Field Notes part of this website, and to get you up-to-speed, we wanted to share the first three in the series:

Vermont's Borderview Farm oilpress received funding from the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative

Vermont’s Borderview Farm oilpress received funding from the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative

Oilseeds, Grass & Algae Each Hold a Place in Vermont’s Renewable Energy Future

This article reviews how bioenergy refers to renewable energy fuels and feedstocks derived from forest and agricultural biomass, liquid biofuels, and biogas to be used for heat, electricity, or vehicle fuel.

 

 

Switchgrass is being harvested at Meach Cove in Vermont for grass heat energy.

Switchgrass is being harvested at Meach Cove in Vermont for grass heat energy.

Grass Energy: State of the Science

This article explores the potential for grasses grown on marginal lands in Vermont to meet a portion of the state’s heating demand and reduce the consumption of fossil fuels and the study being conducted to assess the opportunities.

 

An algae incubation lab at the University of Vermont funded by the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative.

An algae incubation lab at the University of Vermont funded by the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative.

From Ponds to Fuel Tanks: The Role of Algae in our Energy Future

In this article, algae production is discussed as an excellent source of oil for making biodiesel, which could displace substantial volumes of petro-diesel for heating and transportation.

 

Learn more about Green Energy Times at www.GreenEnergyTimes.net and the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative at www.VermontBioenergy.com.

sid bosworthThe University of Vermont Extension Northwest Crops and Soils team held their annual Field Day on Thursday, August 1, 2013 from 10:00am to 3:30pm at Borderview Research Farm in Alburgh, Vermont.

Dr. Heather Darby led more than 200 attendees on a tour of research stations at the farm. The theme of this year’s field day was “Strategic Farming – Gearing Up for Weather Extremes.” Tour stops included brief overviews frhannahom researchers and technicians focused on cover crops, irrigation systems, sunflowers for cooking oil and biodiesel, wheat varieties, aerial seeding, hops variety trials and demonstration of a mechanized hops harvester, and demonstration of an oilseed press.

Vermont Bioenergy Initiative was in attendance with the Bioenergy Now! videos along with copies of the report, Vermont On-Farm Oilseed Enterprises: Production Capacity and Breakeven Economics written by Netaka White, formerly of VSJF and now of Full Sun Company, and Chris Callahan with UVM Extension.

More than 20 attendees, many of them farmers, attended the demonstration of the two oilseed presses at Borderview Farm by Hannah Hardwood of UVM Extension and Roger Rainville, owner along with his wife, Claire, of Borderview Farm.

The Vermont Bioenergy Initiative (VBI) is working to replace a portion of the fossil fuel energy consumed in-state with homegrown alternatives from oilseed crops, perennial grasses and algae. Our grant making and technical assistance are aimed at addressing the most critical issues of our time — peak oil, energy price volatility, and climate change – using an innovative ‘local production for local use’ market development model.

The Vermont Bioenergy Initiative supports the expansion of the supply of and demand for locally produced and commodity-level biofuels in Vermont in order to reduce the state’s dependency on petroleum. By providing grant funding and technical assistance to new businesses, VBI promotes entrepreneurial activity in the emerging biofuels sector that will eventually create livable wage jobs. Further, stimulating farm-based biofuels and bioenergy production enhances farm viability and thereby local food security. In addition to grant-making and technical assistance, VBI helps to educate the public about the benefits of sustainably- and locally-produced bioenergy feedstocks and fuels.

Click here to read more about what defines bioenergy.

The term “Bioenergy” refers to renewable energy fuels and feedstocks derived from biological sources; these can be agricultural biomass, liquid biofuels, and biogas used for heat, electricity, combined heat and power, or vehicle fuel. The term is often used synonymously with “biofuels.”

Some examples of bioenergy feedstocks and fuels being developed in Vermont include switchgrass, hay and other agricultural biomass for heat and power; oilseeds (like canola, sunflower and soybean) and algae for biodiesel; animal waste and food scraps for anaerobic digesters and captured landfill gas to create electricity and biomethane.

While there are a variety of bioenergy feedstocks and fuels, there are three primary focus areas for VBI: Algae, Grass, and Oilseeds.

Algae: Microalgae such as green algae and diatoms can be grown and pressed for oil, fuel, feed, food and fertilizer.

Grass: Perennial grasses like switchgrass, big bluestem, reed canarygrass, and Miscanthus can be grown and compressed into pellets or briquettes for use as heating fuel.

Oilseeds: Oilseeds such as sunflower, soybean, and canola can be grown and pressed for oil that can be made into food-grade cooking oil or biodiesel. The leftover meal is a co-product that can be used for livestock feed and organic fertilizer.

Click here to read more about the Vermont Bioenergy Initiative.