Coal was biomass that captured solar energy

In some places, miners still find fossilized tree trunks in the coal. Lignite was formed millions of years ago from dead plants. During the pre-industrial and industrial booms, it all began with the use of coal to generate electricity.

Even back then—a hundred years ago and earlier—we should have said: Stop! Let’s only use as much energy in our factories and homes as we can produce at the same time. Let’s structure the consumption habits of industry and our living environments in such a way that we can sustainably make do with what we’ve captured and harvested! That was neglected because the drive to raise the standard of living was too great. Who can blame people for that?

Today, it is difficult to reliably meet the constant demand for electrical energy hour by hour, minute by minute, without using coal, oil, natural gas, and uranium. But work is being done on this. Biomass, especially locally sourced wood, naturally plays a role in this as well.

On June 1, 2016, experts specializing in the conversion of wood and other biomass into useful heat and, above all, electricity will gather for two days at the Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences. The focus will be primarily on so-called thermochemical technologies, which include pyrolysis and combustion. More broadly, the event will explore what agriculture and forestry can contribute to a sustainable energy supply without harming the environment or people.

Saxony’s Minister of State for the Environment and Agriculture, Thomas Schmidt (CDU), has confirmed his participation. The event will take place as a joint Czech-German event. Registration is still open at: https://www.energetische-biomassenutzung.de/de/aktuelles/tagungen/tagung-biomass-to-power-and-heat-2016/willkommen.html