In a year that has seen the horror of armed conflict spreading across so many continents, leaders seek to secure their position through military might over negotiation or democratic support. For the multitudes of those caught in the midst of, or displaced by, such conflict it must seem as though mankind and humanity has already hit the point of self-destruction, and my thoughts and prayers go out to them.
To those of us who watch this horror at a distance on the television news from the comfort of our homes, it is too easily forgotten that the greatest threat to our species lies in our overconsumption, depletion of natural resources, pollution and destruction of ecosystems of which we are part. The reason the threat is so great is not because we don’t know about it, we do – the eco-warrior media is as active as ever! – but unlike a shell, grenade, or bullet ripping through our homes and lives, we sit and watch it on TV, in the media, and, as with the awful above-mentioned conflicts, we do nothing about it.
Tackling the inertia of human habit is the key to addressing the crisis that faces us all. To a great extent, just as biomass was the route cause of our industrialisation and over-exploitation – in fossilised form in the shape of coal, oil, gas, and all products derived from them, so too is biomass, in the shape of sustainably managed crops, the answer to the same.
The range of bio-based products available today has grown considerably since my Christmas missive a year ago. Next year it will be even greater, and the exciting thing is that new conversion technologies are developing at an ever greater pace, enabling multiple products to be derived from the same biomass source.
The great thing is that this will mean that we won’t need to worry about where the dye or yarn for our frivolous Christmas jumper comes from, how the steel in our car is smelted, whether our plastics are truly digestible, or buildings sustainable, because, with biomass as the base ingredient, all of this and more can be delivered entirely sustainably while minimising the depletion of our planet’s resources.
So, you might ask, what is holding us back? The answer is Biomass. Terravesta’s end user enquiries this year extend into millions of tonnes ranging from building products to bio-chemistry, energy to biochar, flood alleviation to soil remediation. It is high time the government, press, and public move on from the notion that it is only for burning for expensive power generation, embrace the exciting new industrial, economic and environmental opportunities it can bring, and promote the
planting of fast-growing high-yielding perennial biomass crops. Such crops are totally traceable, monitorable, and politically controllable.
What we ALL must do, is shout from the rooftops that biomass is the way to go. Read up about all of the potential products, sign our petition, and lobby your MP – policy follows public opinion. Biomass can deliver the basis for so many of the products that we take for granted every day, from paint to polish and polyester to pants – remind your MP that the elastic that holds their undergarments (et al) in place could be derived from a field near them rather than an oil well. The annals of parliamentary history indicate politicians to be responsive to matters close by – for better or worse!
Merry Christmas
