Annex

Improving Energy Efficiency in Greenhouse Vegetable Production - Vegfed and Technolutionz Limited
Bioenergy Association of New Zealand
Key Points Identified During the Workshop and Discussed at the Conclusion

Project 'Improving Energy Efficiency in Greenhouse Vegetable Production'

By Vegfed and Technolutionz Ltd

Project stakeholders: A project on Energy Efficiency In Greenhouse is undertaken by Vegfed (project manager Ken Robertson, ken@vegfed.co.nz), funded by MAF's Sustainable Farming Fund (#03/158), with support from NGC and Solid Energy. The research is conducted by Technolutionz Ltd (researcher Elly Nederhoff, Elly@technolutionz.co.nz ). It runs from February 2004 until October 2006.

The greenhouse industry: There are about 700 professional growers using greenhouses for production of vegetables such as tomatoes, capsicums and cucumbers. Overall the Greenhouse Industry employs 4,000+ people on-farm, plus a further 5,000+ in distribution services. It has a retail value of approx $200 Million, with 25% going to export, and increasing.

Impacts of increasing energy prices: Greenhouse vegetable growers use a considerable amount of energy (about 12-16 TeraJoule/hectare/year) for maintaining optimal growing conditions (temperature, humidity, CO2 concentration) to achieve full yield potential. Greenhouse operators face considerable energy price increases due to Carbon Tax on fuel. For growers on the South Island, who nearly all use coal, the future Carbon Tax may account for up to 10% of the production costs. Many North Island growers using natural gas face additional energy prise rises due to depleting gas reserves. Growers cannot pass their increasing costs on to the consumers due to competition between supermarket chains and competition from cheap Australian imports (Australia is not a signatory of the Kyoto protocol). The imminent fuel price rise will have a destructive effect on the greenhouse industry. The best actions growers can take is reducing their energy consumption and thereby improving their energy efficiency.

Project objectives and scope: This project aims at providing directions and guidelines for greenhouse operators to improve their energy efficiency (i.e. produce more for the same amount of energy) and improve their environmental performance (i.e. reduce CO2 emissions). By far the largest portion of energy intake is used for climate control, and a relative very small portion is used for hydroponic pumps, ventilators, motors, coolers, transport, etc. This project focuses on climate control, mainly heating and CO2 enrichment. Overseas in colder climates, e.g. in the Netherlands, greenhouse growers have developed a wide range of energy saving measures, including energy-wise settings in the greenhouse climate control computer. The effectiveness and suitability of such energy-saving measures will be ascertained for New Zealand conditions. Adoption of effective energy saving measures may enable growers to stay in business and may assist the Industry to remain economically viable.

Participating growers: Ten greenhouse growers are participating in this project, covering three main vegetable crops (tomato, capsicum, cucumber), fuels (gas, coal, waste oil), sizes (3,000- >>10,000 m2), geographical zone (from north of Auckland to south of Christchurch), greenhouse types (glass, double plastic), computer brands, and various levels of technology.

Project focus: In the previous winter (July-August 2004), the focus was on South Island growers, as winter conditions are more pronounced on the South Island. In the coming summer (04/05) the focus will be on the North island growers, especially on the use of energy for CO2 enrichment.

Report: The first progress report is available. It contains data on energy consumption in a gas-heated greenhouse in Auckland and a coal-heated greenhouse in Christchurch, results of a test with a thermal screen, boiler efficiency data, infra-red images, and much more.

Text and photos: Elly Nederhoff

Figures: Greenhouse control requires a lot of energy-related technology. Some examples are shown here.

Figures

Examples of technical installations present in greenhouse of the participating growers
(from top left to bottom right):

Gas-fired boiler
Heat storage tank (heat buffer)
Pipe-rail heating (the heating pipes on the ground are used as rails for an electric trolley); here a second heating net is in place located at crop height
A thermal screen can be closed at night for insulation
Heat transport ducts between a boiler and the greenhouse (not lagged)
Infra-Red image of heat transport duct (in e), showing temperatures, indicating heat loss

Text and photos: Elly Nederhoff

Bioenergy Association of New Zealand

The Bioenergy Association of New Zealand (BANZ) has been established to promote and coordinate the development of a bioenergy industry in New Zealand. BANZ provides a central focus point for liaison with Government agencies, the dissemination of information amongst the industry and long-term positioning of bioenergy into New Zealand's energy system.

Members include anyone with a commercial interest in bioenergy - sawmillers, wood processors, energy suppliers, energy researchers, consultants, manufacturers and investors.

BANZ was formed with assistance from the following founding organisations:

Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA).
Forest Research.
Meridian Solutions.
East Harbour Management Services.
Massey University.
CRL Energy.

Mission and Vision

The mission of BANZ is to:

Encourage the utilisation of New Zealand's abundant biomass resources and provide renewable energy in the form of heat, power and transport fuels in a sustainable and cost effective manner.
Promote to the wider community the environmental benefits of Bioenergy including greenhouse gas mitigation and waste avoidance.
Facilitate implementation of commercial bioenergy projects.

The BANZ vision is that annual bioenergy production form woody biomass will double to 50 PJ by the year 2010.

Objectives

The major objectives of BANZ are to:

Assist industry participants to realise commercial opportunities based on the wide range of biomass resources, particularly woody biomass in the first instance.
Assist Government to develop policies supportive of bioenergy projects and the development of export business opportunities.
Advocate policy issues to local, regional and central government, as well as to regulatory bodies, industry groups and other interested organisations to promote the benefits of bionenergy.
Promote the recognition of biomass as a sustainable energy resource.
Encourage and support research activities related to bioenergy technologies, biomass utilisation and the collation of industry data and industry statistics.
Identify, evaluate and, where appropriate, promote the development of markets for liquid and gaseous biomass fuels for the transport sector.
Encourage further uptake of waste-to-energy processes, in particular the use of landfill gases, municipal green waste, and dairy farm waste.
Promote the economic, environmental and social benefits of biomass use (including employment opportunities particularly in rural communities).

BANZ Action Plan

BANZ will:

Produce an Action Plan that ensures that the Association is financially well supported and able to fulfill its objectives.
Ensure that all participants in the industry are encouraged to be members, and the Association is highly respected, through the quality and quantity of its activities.
Nurture the bioenergy industry and the companies that work in it by supporting members to develop their business by providing information and other appropriate assistance.
Organise seminars, conferences and other promotional and educational events in order to disseminate information relating to biomass use.
Provide a forum for members to discuss bioenergy projects and to co-ordinate where appropriate.
Liaise and collaborate with similar international agencies and organisations.

Key Points Identified During the Workshop and Discussed at the Conclusion

The need for ongoing communication between interested parties and the Government's interests.
The role of the Government's Climate Change Projects Mechanism in the development of energy supply and demand issues in agriculture.
The declining government research and development levels since the 1980s.
The poor quality of energy data, the limitations in access to information by parties, particularly Government-supported research, the need for a framework for data collection and use, and for projections.
Support for energy research and development has been crisis-driven in the past - is there a crisis now? Is there a need to move to a sustainable development approach?
Energy training needs at all levels, both research and job-related.
Energy savings as a co-benefit are often seen as the best approach for the promotion of energy efficiency.
The need to have more involvement in international developments, including support of the International Energy Association (IEA).
The need to drive renewable energy research through to the commercialisation stage.
What is the role in competitiveness between energy companies and is this driving increasing energy use?
2013 and the requirements for line companies to no longer support end of line provision in rural areas. What opportunities and threats does this present?
The need to have a seamless transition from research to development to demonstration to technology transfer and commercialisation/implementation.
Ownership and control of energy supply and demand as it relates to farm energy security.
The role of distributed generation and net metering.
Is there a need for a Bioenergy Strategy, separate from the Government's overall Renewables Strategy?

Contact for Enquiries

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