Coming Sunday and Monday:
With the eyes of the world glued to the Copenhagen climate conference for a plan to reduce world-wide carbon emissions, regional farmers and a Wurtland start-up company are looking to provide biofuel products to lower greenhouse gases pouring out of coal-fired electric plants.
Sunday: Through a demonstration project operated by the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, switchgrass planted on three local farms has been cut for the second year to be burned as a supplement with coal at a power plant in Maysville. The plant grows thick and deep into the ground, making it a carbon positive process as it grows and even as it burns.
Monday: After a public debut in April, Midwestern Biofuels plans to start processing wood pellets on contract for power plants in January, a year ahead of potential competitors and expectations of the industry. Using proprietary technology developed and built in-house, the company plans to employ over 230 people turning switchgrass, miscanthus, and wood waste into biofuel pellets for coal-fired plants.
