Biomass Connect Webinar No. 8

Managing fuel storage and drying to best practice quality standards

Biomass crops produce high yields in a short period of time. However, depending on the crop type and the end use there will be a myriad of ways to store and dry your material. You have to consider storage space, logistics and economics and the end use specification. This webinar will provide information on the different options and how you can make sure you are producing the best quality biomass for your chosen market. It will also flag up important aspects of health and safety and legal obligations. The webinar will include two farmers who are using biomass crops in their boilers and will pass on their experience.

Our Speakers will be Will Richardson, Director of RDI Associates, Jonathan Andrew, a farmer from North Devon and David Christopher of Langaller Farm in Somerset.

Speakers:

Will Richardson MICFor, MSc, BSc (Hons): RDIA Director

A Member of the Institute of Chartered Foresters and Masters degree in Forest Management graduate from the University of Aberdeen, Will has worked in the forest industry for over twenty-seven years in both the public and private sectors. He is currently involved in a number of work areas including over 10 years as an auditor for Woodsure and the BSL, provision of management services to private land owners on forest management, and woodland creation and research and consultancy on forest and biomass-industry related projects.

Co-founder and Director of RDI Associates Ltd, Will has a strong practical background in forestry and has held a variety of operational posts since 1990; forest nursery, private estate forester, forestry contractor, director of a woodfuel producer group, and Lantra Awards certified training course instructor. Will has in-depth knowledge of forest certification schemes having set up the UK’s first Grown in Britain chain of custody certification group and manages over 1500ha of woodlands under the UK Woodland Assurance Standard.

Jonathan Andrew

Mr Andrew is the owner of Umberleigh Barton Farm, a mixed farm situated in North Devon. The farm has six residential properties, two of which are occupied by Mr and Mrs Andrew and Mr Andrew’s parents, whilst the other four are occupied by tenants. These are heated with a 130 kW biomass boiler which is accredited under the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI). Mr Andrew has been supplementing bought-in woodchip with home-grown SRC willlow, grown on 4 hectares of his farm since 2019.

David Christopher

Mr Christopher is the owner of Langaller Farm, a family run farm in Dulverton, Somerset covering around 40 hectares. The majority of the farm is covered by Miscanthus grass that was planted in 2006-2007. Since 2012, Mr Christopher has been using Miscanthus chip as the primary fuel source in his 130 kW RHI accredited biomass boiler. This heats his farm house and barns containing 40,000 indoor reared chickens.