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1.5.13
BUSINESS NEWS

Moneytalks
Have you tried BOKASHI composting?
Convenient, air-tight bucket in your kitchen Works up to 50% faster than traditional composting Turns food scraps into compost in a matter of weeks Fermentation process, no smelly, decaying odours More Bokashi information at zingbokashi.co.nz Available in 10 and 15 litre sizes from DCC Customer Services Centres.
477 4000 www.dunedin.govt.nz

Wood is the green alternative to coal

By EMILY MURPHY
urning wood might seem to be the opposite of being carbon neutral, but Dunedins Wood Energy Cluster believes wood power is the way of the future. The cluster, comprised of a number of key players including the Dunedin City Council and a number of businesses, has worked together to bring wood energy into the commercial arena. Other cluster members include City Forest, the Dunedin Energy Centre, and Wood Energy New Zealand, a company which turns waste wood into chips and pellets. All businesses have to meet national air quality standards by September this year, and cluster members said their wood energy devices had reduced emissions and also saved them money. In an effort to improve Dunedins air quality, Otago Regional Council has tightened fuel burner rules, leaving some organisations with two choices modify, or replace. Spark Energy, a supplier of wood-fired boilers, believes the choice is obvious. Wood pellets are about 60 per cent more cost-efficient than LPG and Diesel, managing director Eduard Ebbinge said. Knox College Building officer Don Hughes replaced the residential halls coal boiler just more than one year ago. To bring it up to date would be

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more costly than installing a woodchip boiler, he said. Today, he is happy with his decision. In 2011 the hall spent about $74,500 on coal. Last year, just $66,000 went on wood. The switch also falls in line with the colleges sustainability goals, said Hughes, who was surprised by how low the halls carbon emissions have been since making the switch. Energy Efficiency Conservation Authority programme manager Shaun Bowler said that with carbon prices expected to increase up to $25 a tonne in the longer term, wood will be the

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best long-term investment for businesses. Tahuna Normal Intermediate led the way in 2009, and was the first Dunedin institution to replace its coal-fired boiler. Principal Tony Hunter said he saw it as a good green option. Our old antiquated coal-fired boiler was in a state of disrepair, he said. It was like coming out of the dark ages. Dunedin City Council energy manager Neville Auton said building a wood energy industry would stimulate Dunedins economy. It would also reduce the amount spent buying energy outside of the city. Keeping that money here builds economic buoyancy, he said. One EECA study has shown a small plant converting wood residue into wood pellets maintains up to four fulltime jobs a year. City Forests chief executive Grant Dodson said wood energy was not a new phenomenon, but demand had increased in the past three to five years as people become more aware of its benefits. Wood is a clean, green, carbonneutral alternative to coal for commercial energy he said. City Forests, a council-owned company, harvests about 270,000 cubic metres of wood each year. Dodson said there was adequate wood supply available in Otago for the wood energy sector to expand.

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