Carbon avoidance or carbon capture? Which is the best strategy for Net Zero?
Friday 12 November 2021.
Agritech Solutions Contributing to Net Zero Carbon
As changeable weather and unusual ‘rare events’ start to become the norm, the impact of Climate Change is hard to ignore. British agriculture is not only suffering from these events; such as extremes of drought and rainfall, but needs to be part of the solution. Not only must we produce food in a sustainable manner, but we need to go even further towards carbon capture and retention. In this session we will look at the two options balancing, (1) Carbon Production Avoidance and (2) Carbon Capture. We will examine option (1) first with valorisation, prevention of landfilling/degrading material; and alternative heat and power production on farm and in production systems. Then some options for carbon capture (2) and underlying themes in the second session. We will finish with a discussion as to how well the two will compliment each other:- can we approach NET ZERO using these strategies?
Programme
- Introduction: What is Net zero and what sorts of activity leads to achievement in or from farming activities? Lydia Smith, Head of NIAB Innovation Farm and the Eastern Agri-Tech Innovation Hub
- Alternative ways of delivering Solar farming; Agri-volteic farming. Luke Palmer, NFU Area representative and Cambridgeshire Farmer
- Valorisation of waste food using insects, in dispersing a network of Bio Conversion Units, to create Local Nutrient Circularity. Richard Small, MD of INSPRO Ltd
- Hydroponic Cultivation of salad vegetables; maximising the use of AgriTech to minimise soil use for short duration cropping. Graham Taylor, Postdoctoral Research Associate, NIAB (Interreg2Seas Hy4Dense)
- Novel valorisations of low-grade carbon-based material into the building trade. Omar Hiasat, Process Engineer, CAMBOND Ltd
- Multispecies ‘herbal’ leys; maximising production efficiencies and reducing nutrient losses from Welsh lamb production. Emily Cooledge, Bangor University, BBSRC-SARIC PhD Student
- Hemp; reintroduction of an underutilised crop with enormous potential for carbon capture and storage; with multiple market opportunities. Nathaniel Loxley, British Hemp Alliance
- Pulling biodiversity and carbon sequestration options together. Nick Padgett, KenHill Estate
- Agriforestry; What is the potential for the UK farmed environment? Jeremy Sweet, Sweet Environmental Consultants