Britain could power new homes with sticks and straw

More than 1 mm homes planned by ministers over the next decade could be powered and fuelled by biomass energy derived from willows, elephant grass, straw and tree cuttings, the royal commission on environmental pollution (RCEP) said. In a special report it set the ultra-ambitious target of producing 12 % of Britain's energy from biomass by 2050 and accused the government of failing to promote a significant renewable, leaving the UK 10 years behind parts of Europe.
Perhaps as many as 7 mm hectares of the current 17 mm hectares of agricultural land would be given over to energy crops such as willow and poplar -- whose CO2 effect is broadly neutral since they absorb the gas as they grow -- implying a dramatic transformation of the face of the country in the RCEP scenario.

The commission, chaired by biochemist Sir Tom Blundell, recommended four years ago that Britain cut its CO2 emissions by 60 % by 2050 to help to combat global warming. It says biomass should provide 16,000 MW of energy.
Sir Tom said biomass energy had failed to develop "under fractured and misdirected government policies" while Professor Paul Ekins, a RCEP member, called for "fresh blood and eyes" at government departments with ministers demanding a performance that was "blatantly" unforthcoming so far.

The commission wants ministers to promote greater use of combined heat and power (CHP) through a new renewables obligation for heat to match the system used to encourage electricity generation from renewables.
Pointing out that biomass was more controllable than wind and could act as a back-up or "spinning reserve" to other energy sources, the RCEP said John Prescott's "sustainable communities" programme would need 1.2 mm new homes by 2016, mainly in the south-east. It said CHP from biomass should be an integral part of these homes.