Experience of many countries shows, that even in case of absence of heavy stocks of oil and gas the economy of the state can develop effectively. Belarusian specialists managed to adopt experience of Germany, Austria, Scandinavia and Poland in the sphere of usage of woody biomass for energetic purposes during the international seminar, which was organized by the International State Ecological University named after A.D. Sakharov and by Minsk office of Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.What is in the storeroom?
Our country has a small perspective of biomass usage, noted the first deputy minister of natural resources and environment protection Alexander Apatsky at the opening of the seminar. According to him, the Republic of Belarus possesses significant potential of usage of bioresources for energetic purposes and it can save great funds, necessary for the purchase of oil and gas.
Our main property is forests, nearly 38 percents of the territory of Belarus is covered with them. Nearly 44 percents of the territory are agricultural lands, which can also be used for biomass obtainment.
— Unfortunately, agricultural lands are not always used effectively, — notes Alexander Apatsky. — It especially touches inefficient lands. Apart from that, there are many lands in Belarus, which are subject to water and wind erosion. It is very difficult and inappropriate to use them in agricultural crop rotation. Instead, it is possible to make forest plantations on these lands or to plant fast-growing crops, which would give biomass. This could have strengthen soil, to maintain fertility and at the same time to obtain quality biomass.
The first deputy minister of natural resources and environment protection also considers, that significant areas can be used for sowing of fast-growing crops, including oleiferous, and not for burning in firepots, but as raw material for fuel production.
A reasonable approach to everything is necessary
Some specialists express fear, that excessive implication of wooden wealth of Belarus into energetics can badly influence the ecological situation. The deputy chairman of the State Committee on science and technologies of Belarus Igor Vojtov just stressed at the seminar, that our country carries out the policy of forest cover increase. “The state spends huge efforts for the forest growing in order in the coming years 40 percents of the territory was covered with it”, — he said.
Certainly, modernization, directed to the attraction of local fuel types in energetics, is associated with certain discharge in the air.
— If not to apply modern technologies or not to keep an eye on this strictly, to lower the requirements, we can obtain additional discharge of contaminating agents in the air, and also emissions — products of combustion, — commented Alexander Apatsky. — But there are good solutions of this problem on the international level, which allow practically not increasing discharge and solving the problem of emissions. Apart from this, biomass burning is a very favourable direction from the point of view of obligations’ execution on Kioto protocol, as, according to the international classification, the discharge from wood and other mass combustion are not greenhouse. That is why Belarus will be able to obtain additional funds for solution of difficult ecological tasks with the help of these mechanisms.
According to Alexander Apatsky, we should approach to everything from the point of view of economy. It is irrational to pull big networks of a gas pipe line for the sake of a small boiler-house in the region, as, using wood instead of gas we can reduce line losses to nearly 30 percents. “We don’t have to burn expensive fuel, which is transported from the far north or east, — he considers. — It is better to use something, what sometimes decays on our land, and sometimes is a nidus of contamination with infectious diseases. We should timely pick it up from the land and use in the national economy”.
In support of his words Alexander Apatsky quoted an eloquent figure — in Belarus nearly 10 million of cubic meters of biomass can be used exactly as fuel. “On the whole, we have good dynamics by growth of biomass quantity. It is necessary to use it rationally, observing ecological requirements”, — underlined the first deputy minister of natural resources and environment protection.
And we have biogas
In each region of the republic there is from one to four cattle-breeding and poultry complexes. The waste from them can be used as biofuel. Alexander Apatsky said, that three first biogas installations will start working in Belarus this year, built in many ways at the expense of the assets of the Fund of nature conservation. On two objects — on cattle-breeding complex “Zapadny” in Brest region and Zaslavl pedigree poultry factory under Minsk — precommissioning has already been carried out. It is planned, that the third installation will work in the end of summer on the poultry factory in Gomel. Now their effectiveness and the term of payback are estimated.
As Igor Voytov noted, this is a perspective direction for the country. “In Belarus nearly 320 biogas installations can be created in big cattle-breeding complexes”, — he reported. The possibility of creation of biogas installations on active silt is also not excluded, which is formed in treatment facilities in great numbers.
Alexander Sokolovsky
