BIOENERGY OPTIONS BOOST FARM INCOMES

摘要

Generating your own renewable energy can provide useful income and help cut energy bills. But choosing the right system for your business is crucial. The 20,000-acre Swinton Park Estate at Masham, near Ripon, has cut its fuel bill by 50% since installing a woodchip burner five years ago, and the found 200,000 cost, partly grait-funded, has almost been covered by the savings made. The estate also runs a luxury hotel, and it was the combined costs of heating the hotel as well as staff accommodation andancillary properties that instigated the initial evaluation of generating power from a sustainable source. "We have 2000 acres of forestry on the estate and employ four full-rime foresters," explains owner Mark Cunliffe-Lister. "There was an ample supply of thinnings that could be made use of, so by installing a woodchip burner, we were tackling the rising costs of electricity and also making full use of the timber we produce."