increase font size
A model of the Energy Demonstration Farm.
New Zealand’s first Energy Demonstration Farm is at work, with an aim to find sustainable energy solutions to meet the Government’s carbon reduction requirements.
The Energy Demonstration Farm is designed to be fossil fuel-free and feature solar and wind power, bio-fuel, and energy storage solutions while showcasing the range of technology available and how it can be applied, as well as providing data for research and innovation.
The project is a partnership between Lincoln University and the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI).
Leading the project are Dr Wim de Koning and Dr Jeff Heyl of Lincoln University. They said the Energy Demonstration Farm would be unique in its set-up and a world-first in its scale and scope.
“Transitioning to sustainable energy in the agri-food sector is a necessity,” de Koning said.
“The Government’s zero carbon legislation has provided a time-frame of 30 years for completion of this transition.
“To meet the Government goal of 100% renewable energy by 2035, we need to start making the first major steps with urgency.
De Koning said the farm would show the diverse range of sustainable energy production technology currently available, from fossil fuel to circular food production systems.
“It’s leading transformation through demonstration - to facilitate sustainable, feasible and bankable solutions.”
“The small and medium-sized enterprises operating in the primary industries need a pre-investment proof of concept.”
“They don’t have the capacity to make mistakes by investing in the wrong technology. At the Energy Demonstration Farm we can explore alternatives, not all of which may be successful. We can provide that proof so the right choices are made.”
MPI Acting Director Investment Portfolio, Cheyne Gillooly, said the Energy Demonstration Farm has the potential for farmers to explore the technology and test it before they make an investment.
“Farming is a high tech, high capital business and New Zealand farmers have always been at the forefront of innovative farming techniques. We’re excited to support the Energy Demonstration Farm and help give farmers an opportunity to test the technology beforehand.”
The six-hectare farm site is near the Lincoln University Dairy Farm and the main campus.
OPINION: Among the many satisfying jobs on the farm is shifting our Angus heifers onto fresh pasture. They love it. Tails up, they gallop around for a minute, then it’s heads down — those long, raspy tongues pulling in mouthfuls of lush green feed.
OPINION: A press release from the oxygen thieves running the hot air symposium on climate change, known as COP30, grabbed your old mate’s attention.
OPINION: In a memo, rich guy Bill Gates didn't become a climate change denier, but he did give the world a dose of common sense, saying we should redirect efforts away from the campaign to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and instead focus on other ways to improve human lives and reduce suffering.
Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment Simon Upton is calling for cross-party consensus on the country's overarching environmental goals.
New research could help farmers prepare for a future where summer rainfall is increasingly unpredictable and where drought risk is rising, no matter what.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says withdrawing from the Paris Agreement on climate change would be “a really dumb move”.
The University of Waikato has broken ground on its new medical school building.
Undoubtedly the doyen of rural culture, always with a wry smile, our favourite ginger ninja, Te Radar, in conjunction with his wife Ruth Spencer, has recently released an enchanting, yet educational read centred around rural New Zealand in one hundred objects.
Farmers are being urged to keep on top of measures to control Cysticerus ovis - or sheep measles - following a spike in infection rates.
For more than 50 years, Waireka Research Station at New Plymouth has been a hub for globally important trials of fungicides, insecticides and herbicides, carried out on 16ha of orderly flat plots hedged for protection against the strong winds that sweep in from New Zealand’s west coast.
There's a special sort of energy at the East Coast Farming Expo, especially when it comes to youth.
OPINION: Your old mate welcomes the proposed changes to local government but notes it drew responses that ranged from the reasonable…
OPINION: A press release from the oxygen thieves running the hot air symposium on climate change, known as COP30, grabbed your…
