BioRegen

The Project

The aim of the BioReGen Life III Environment Project is to demonstrate the feasibility of reusing "brownfield" sites to grow energy crops for renewable energy.

The science bit...
So called "brownfield" sites are those which are previously developed for non-agricultural land. If the previous use was industrial this often means that the soil is contaminated. Very often such sites lie vacant in a derelict state awaiting redevelopment. Our idea is to put them to a more beneficial use.

Energy from burning crops specifically grown for fuel is "renewable", unlike that from burning finite resources of fossil fuels. When the "biomass" is burnt it releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. If the crops are grown again then the same amout of carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere. As a consequence biofuels are "carbon neutral", since they have no overall effect on the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Rising levels of this "greenhouse gas" are linked to "global warming".

The idea for the BioReGen Project came from field trials carried out by the Clean Environment Management Centre (CLEMANCE) of the University of Teesside. This photograph shows the first site back in August 2004 shortly after it was planted.

BioReGen: /bio-re-gen/
BioReGen is short for "Biomass, Remediation reGeneration: Re-using brownfield sites for renewable energy crops". It is a 4-5 year project funded by the Life III Environment Programme to investigate whether brownfield sites can be used to grow plants for fuel (energy crops).

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