Move to biomass crops improves land carbon balance, Teagasc finds

CONVERSION to biomass crops improves the carbon balance of land usage, according to the latest Teagasc research.

While ecologists generally agree that energy crops can displace fossil fuel imports, until now there has been uncertainty as to the level of emissions created from the cultivation of energy crops. This debate has revolved around the net benefit of growing energy crops to reduce greenhouse gas emissions versus the carbon used up in their production.

Teagasc has found encouraging results from its research projects to quantify the greenhouse gas emissions associated with these crops.