QUICK NOTESMongabay, a leading resource for news and perspectives on environmental and conservation issues related to the tropics, has launched Tropical Conservation Science - a new, open access academic e-journal. It will cover a wide variety of scientific and social studies on tropical ecosystems, their biodiversity and the threats posed to them. Tropical Conservation Science - March 8, 2008.At the 148th Meeting of the OPEC Conference, the oil exporting cartel decided to leave its production level unchanged, sending crude prices spiralling to new records (above $104). OPEC "observed that the market is well-supplied, with current commercial oil stocks standing above their five-year average. The Conference further noted, with concern, that the current price environment does not reflect market fundamentals, as crude oil prices are being strongly influenced by the weakness in the US dollar, rising inflation and significant flow of funds into the commodities market." OPEC - March 5, 2008. Kyushu University (Japan) is establishing what it says will be the world’s first graduate program in hydrogen energy technologies. The new master’s program for hydrogen engineering is to be offered at the university’s new Ito campus in Fukuoka Prefecture. Lectures will cover such topics as hydrogen energy and developing the fuel cells needed to convert hydrogen into heat or electricity. Of all the renewable pathways to produce hydrogen, bio-hydrogen based on the gasification of biomass is by far both the most efficient, cost-effective and cleanest. Fuel Cell Works - March 3, 2008. An entrepreneur in Ivory Coast has developed a project to establish a network of Miscanthus giganteus farms aimed at producing biomass for use in power generation. In a first phase, the goal is to grow the crop on 200 hectares, after which expansion will start. The project is in an advanced stage, but the entrepreneur still seeks partners and investors. The plantation is to be located in an agro-ecological zone qualified as highly suitable for the grass species. Contact us - March 3, 2008. A 7.1MW biomass power plant to be built on the Haiwaiian island of Kaua‘i has received approval from the local Planning Commission. The plant, owned and operated by Green Energy Hawaii, will use albizia trees, a hardy species that grows in poor soil on rainfall alone. The renewable power plant will meet 10 percent of the island's energy needs. Kauai World - February 27, 2008. |
Previous Articles
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- Researchers at the Taiwan Forestry Research Institute (TFRI) and North Carolina State University in the U.S. have developed genetically modified Eucalyptus trees that store far more carbon dioxide and contain less lignin. - Biopact Sept. 17, 2007
- The International Eucalyptus Genome Consortium's sequencing effort has been taken up as a project under the U.S. Dept. of Energy's Joint Genome Project for the year 2008. - Biopact June 12, 2007
- Brazilian state of Acre intends to make cattle ranchers reforest land which they have cleared for grazing. The sustainable forestry policy is based on replanting economic tree crops such as mahogany, acai, Brazil nut and palms - BBCNews Sept. 27, 2006
- Illegal deforestation of acacia for charcoal is becoming a serious problem in Kenya's Naivasha area. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Wangari Maathai's Green Belt Movement re-afforests with acacia but needs more support to win fight against illegal loggers - Kenya Times Sept. 5, 2006
- Australian scientists are conducting a 'time-machine' experiment to see how eucalyptus trees cope with increased levels of CO2 and global warming. - University of Western Sydney Aug. 28, 2006
- International research effort underway to sequence cassava genome, which may result in increased starch yields - USDA Agricultural Research Service - Aug. 30, 2006
- Cassava has one of the highest rates of CO2 fixation and sucrose synthesis for any C3 plant. With this in mind, researchers from Ohio State University develop transgenic cassava with starch yields up 2.6 times higher than normal plants by increasing the sink strength for carbohydrate in the crop. This means cassava makes for a 'super crop' when it comes to both CO2 fixation and carbohydrate production, i.e. sugars, the feedstock for ethanol - Plant Biotechnology Journal - Volume 4/Issue 4 - July 2006
- Vietnam's Institute of Tropical Biology to invest in Jatropha research - Le courrier du Vietnam - Sept. 6, 2006
- Genetic study proves humans have pushed orangutans to the brink of extinction; genetic decline coincides with establishment of oil palm plantations in Malaysia/Indonesia since the 1950/60s- Public Library of Science / Biology, Volume 4/Issue 2 - February, 2006
- Synthetic Genomics and the Asiatic Centre for Genome Technology Sdn Bhd (ACGT) have created a multi-year research and development joint venture to sequence and analyze the oil palm genome. In-depth genomic analyses will be followed by subsequent studies that will analyze the oil palm’s root and leaf microbial communities, to identify biomarkers and metabolic pathways that affect the plant's growth and viability. Biopact - July, 2007
- Researchers at the International Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics have developed a sweet sorghum for the production of ethanol. The new variety has a very high sugar content in its root. Average yields in trial fields in the Philippines were between 95 to 125 tons, considerably higher than those of sugarcane - ICRISAT - Feb. 28, 2007
- Sokoine University of Agriculture, Tanzania, develops sorghum and millet processing technologies suitable for local conditions in effort to empower small farmers - IPP Media - Sept. 6, 2006
- South Africa blocks GM Sorghum project for fears over contamination of local wild sorghums - Kruger Park - Aug. 26, 2006
- Brazilian authorities have given their fiat for field trials with genetically modified sugar cane plants. The Centro de Tecnologia Canavieira (Cane Technology Center - CTC) will test three genetically modified varieties that are expected to yield 15% more sugar - GMO Compass
- Bamboo planting can slow deforestation, scientists from the International Center for Research in Agroforestry in Nairobi, Kenya, say. Bamboo rapidly becoming economically beneficial crop with large potential for energy, bioremediation, and afforestation - Chosun (S.Korea) Aug. 30, 2006
- "The beauty of miscanthus is that you only have to sow it once...Because of the way it grows, there is no need for fertilisers or chemicals", an English entrepreneur talks about his experience with Miscanthus as an energy crop - Grantham Today Aug. 8, 2006
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Wednesday, July 30, 2008
A burning issue: satellite data show very large potential of rice straw as bioenergy feedstock
Milap Punia from the Center for the Study of Regional Development at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, and Vinod Prasad Nautiya and Yogesh Kant, both from the Indian Institute of Remote Sensing, first sketch the scale and seriousness of the current practise: setting fire to millions of tonnes of crop residues releases vast amounts of greenhouse and trace gases (CH4, CO, N2O, NOx), which heavily contribute to global warming and result in perturbations to regional atmospheric chemistry. The resulting air pollution is an important health hazard for Punjab's population. Weather patterns can change because of the aerosols that enter the atmosphere as a result of the burning.
The reason why most farmers burn off the straw is the lack of a market for the resource. Currently, rice straw has no commercial value. Its disposal rather constitutes an extra cost. Ploughing it into soils is time and energy consuming, and the residues take a long time to decompose. Burning the straw on the field is the most economic and easiest way to get rid of it.
But the good news is that this "burning problem" - an unhealthy cocktail of serious air pollution leading to respiratory illnesses, large emissions of climate-destructive gases, and a huge wastage of energy - can be turned into a bright green future simply by using the resource as a feedstock for modern bioenergy production.
Modelling Satellite Data
The scientists attempted to estimate the total area per district affected by rice straw burning. To do so, they relied on both low resolution (MODIS) and moderate resolution (AWiFS) satellite data. The model looks at the thermal channels of MODIS and complements it with a knowledge-based approach for AWiFS data. A hybrid contextual test-fire detection and tentative-fire detection algorithm for satellite thermal images was designed to identify the fire pixels over the region. The algorithm essentially treats fire pixels as anomalies in images and can be considered a special case of the more general clutter or background suppression problem. It utilizes the local background around a potential fire pixel, and discriminates fire pixels, avoiding the 'false alarm'. The model incorporates the statistical properties of individual bands and requires the manual setting of multiple thresholds.
In addition, a decision-tree classification based on the See5 algorithm was applied to the AWiFS data. When combined with image classification using a machine learning decision tree classification, this approach gives a high accuracy. The study then compared the estimated burned area over the region using the two algorithms.
Punjab on Fire
Expressed in terms of the acreage that was burned on that same day, the analysts found that a total of 4315.35 square kilometres was affected (graph, click to enlarge). Among the most active districts were Amritsar, followed by Jhalandhar, Ludhiana, Firozpur and Patiala.
This is the first time that such a detailed graphical and statistical set of data is produced showing the extent of the practise of rice straw burning. Mapping of burned biomass has proved to be a difficult task in the past, but remote-sensing tools now seem to be promising:
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In a future step, the results obtained from analysing the satallite data will have to be checked and complemented by field observations, in order to validate them.
Using the resource wisely
The very large amount of rice straw that is burned in the open air each year in Punjab is an extreme form of waste. The energy contained in the biomass gets lost, as do valuable soil nutrients, mainly N and C in the topsoil layer.
The practise further contributes very strongly to regional air pollution and global warming. On a planetary scale, the burning of biomass in the open air is recognized as contributing as much as 40% of gross carbon dioxide and 38% of tropospheric ozone. It has a significant impact on the atmospheric chemistry and biogeochemical cycles, radiative energy balance and climate.
In the year 2000, the emission of CH4, CO, N2O and NOx has been estimated to be about 110, 2306, 2 and 84 Gg respectively from rice and wheat straw burning in India.
Add the fact that local air pollution can make life during the burning season extremely uncomfortable. Respiratory illnesses resulting from this practise are a significant disease burden on Indian society.
All these different problems can be tackled at once by one single intervention: using the biomass resource in modern bioenergy production units. This captures the energy in the residues, which now gets lost, and cuts both air pollution levels and greenhouse gas emissions as the bioenergy is used instead of fossil fuels.
There are many pathways for the conversion of this vast resource of unused rice straw into useful energy products - from liquid biofuels and biohydrogen to alternatives for coal or natural gas. Each one of these has its advantages and disadvantages.
The biomass material can be densified close to the field (e.g. torrefaction combined with pelletization) and brought to small, medium or large scale energy plants. The bioenergy facilities can be kept local and meet the energy needs of rural households, or be centralized and supply electricity to the grid.
Alternatively, the straw can be used as a feedstock for the simultaneous production of clean energy and biochar. Biochar can be sequestered as stable C into the soils from which the straw was removed. This approach would contribute to boosting the fertility of these soils, and would generate carbon credits.
The choice for any particular utilisation pathway depends on a myriad of social, economic, environmental, and infrastructural factors. But it is clear that the worst way to use the straw is to burn it in the open air, as is currently done.
The work of Milap Punia, Vinod Prasad Nautiya and Yogesh Kant shows that the analysis of satellite images can go a far way in helping us understand the regional availability of biomass resources. This kind of research will also determine how much of the organic matter should be returned to the soils in order to ensure that its use as a source of energy remains sustainable.
Picture: Punjabi farmers burn the rice straw that remains after the rice harvest. The practise represents a waste of energy and soil nutrients, and contributes to local air pollution and climate change. Credit: USDA/FAS.
References:
Milap Punia, Vinod Prasad Nautiya and Yogesh Kant, "Identifying biomass burned patches of agriculture residue using satellite remote sensing data", Current Science, vol. 94, n° 9, 10 May 2008.
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