International Fugitive Emissions Abatement in Eden

post by Murray Reed.

Gavin Lindsay and I went down to the Eden Project in Cornwall yesterday for a symposium by the Cornwall Net Zero Methane Hub coordinated by IFEAA, the International Fugitive Emissions Abatement Association. Thanks to IFEAA Chair George Eustice and CEO Penny Atkins for putting on a strong programme of talks on innovative bio-methane plants for farms, in a great setting, and with a fine range of Cornish pasties and potatoes for lunch. The consolidation and industrialisation of farms are providing opportunities for a bio-methane technology-driven transition to more energy independent and sustainable agriculture with recycling of energy, fertiliser, and feed, plus a massive reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. But farm finances are super tight, subsidies are evaporating, and approvals are tricky to get, so adoption remains sparse. Catching up to Europe is going to take much more coordinated UK government support and it is great to see Cornwall’s enthusiasm for the challenge. It was also clear that measuring exactly how much methane is being emitted and captured by these systems is still a major challenge and QLM Technology’s quantum lidar methane cameras can play an important role in monetizing methane from manure.