Norfolk woodfuel project attracts grant
Anglia Woodfuels – the new co-operative facilitating woodchip as an alternative heating source – has secured funding from the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Sustainable Development Fund for three of its members.
The woodfuel projects being implemented by the Bayfield Hall, Holkham Hall and Kelling Hall estates will each receive £6,000 towards the installation of woodchip boilers. Anglia Woodfuels will receive an additional £2,500 to help fund open days and case study work relating to the three sites. The total grant of £20,500 equates to 14% of the overall costs.
Gary Battell, Woodfuel Advisor to Anglia Woodfuels, who co-ordinated the grant application, said:
"Woodfuel has a wholly viable future as an alternative to heating oil, particularly in East Anglia. We are proactively encouraging everyone from woodland owners through to local authorities and the general public to embrace the benefits of this sustainable heat source. The grant towards the three boiler installations is a real boost to us and to the recipient members.
"Small scale biomass fuel has been highlighted by Norfolk County Council as a suitable renewable energy source for the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. A number of studies, for example 'Woodfuel In Norfolk', produced by Shaping the Future and Norfolk County Council, have shown that the development of the biomass fuel industry in Norfolk is constrained by the lack of installed capacity. The installation of woodfuel boilers will directly address this stumbling block to the development of the woodfuel industry. "
Fund administrator Maree Limpus of the Norfolk Coast Partnership said:
"The really exciting thing about this project is that it is a way to set the spark that will hopefully see others in our community coming on board. At the moment it is a bit of a chicken and egg situation with wood supply and woodfuel boiler instillations and it needs something to get the ball rolling. The potential benefits are great in terms of sustainable forestry and all the advantages for wildlife, and employment that go with that along with lowered CO2 emissions and having a renewable energy source within our Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
