Powerful brew

Published on 24/01/2013 00:00

Alan Black (Letters, 22 January) is correct about wood biomass being used as fuel. However, there are other forms of energy derived from biomass, most notably through bacterial fermentation.

However, the bugs require a carbon source to grow on. Brazil and Mexico use sugar cane, but this doesn’t grow too well around these parts.

Other carbon sources are available, but these require a lot of land to grow them (trees, for 
instance). There is a lot of agricultural waste out there, and British scientists have been working on this for many years – we don’t have to re-invent the wheel.

We would also require to build fermentation plants. This is not a problem in Scotland, as we seem to accept without question the sight of large metal structures whirling around in the breeze.

Geoff Dunn

Livingston