Newsletter/ nawaros^® 02/04

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Content

EU Eastern Enlargement, Determining Factors, Potentials, Opportunities
BioFach 2004
World Biomass Conference in Rome
Biomass in Japan, Biomass Forum in Japan
Biodiesel in Japan
Engine Oil for Diesel Engines with Particulate Filters
Renewable Energies
Label for Biodiesel and Great Praise for Lorry Fleet
Discourse on Sustainability
Bionics Contest

IEU Eastern Enlargement, Determining Factors, Potentials, Opportunities

In May 2004, ten countries will be joining the European Union (EU). Additional areas for agriculture and forestry will increase the biomass yield so that economically interesting applications are much in demand.
For this reason, the C.A.R.M.E.N. Forum "Renewable Raw Materials" in the ducal castle of Straubing on March 22nd, 2004, deals with the subject "EU Eastern Enlargement - Determining Factors, Potentials, Opportunities".
The economic forum is held in co-operation with the Chamber of Industry and Commerce for Lower Bavaria, Passau. Everybody is invited who deals with questions of the use of renewable raw materials and who is interested in current trends of the future EU enlargement area.
The Bavarian Minister of Food, Agriculture and Forestry, Josef Miller, opens the meeting by his lecture "The Enlarged Union - A Sounder Basis for the Use of Renewable Raw Materials". Subsequently, Peter Sonnleitner, Chamber of Commerce of Lower Bavaria, explains regional effects of the EU eastern enlargement, also showing support possibilities of the Chamber of Commerce.
These lectures are followed by two forum sections. In the first section, representatives from East Europe report on the use of renewable raw materials in their respective countries. Zavis Pexidr, Czech Ministry of Agriculture, Prague, is the first speaker. He deals with the energetic use of biomass in the Czech Republic. Afterwards, Josip Dundovic, National Forest Administration of Croatia, Zagreb, talks about the use of wood logs and wood chips in Croatia. Dr. Gheorghe Florian Borlea, Forest Research and Management Institute, Timisoara, gives a lecture on the wood energy potential in Roumania.
In the second section, Austrian and Bavarian entrepreneurs talk about their experience in the field of renewable raw materials in East Europe. Günter Huemer, Guntamatic Heiztechnik GmbH, Peuerbach, reports on "A Manufacturer of Biomass Boilers in Poland: How to open up new markets". The title of Harald Volkmar Lang's (Ökotherm Projekt GmbH) lecture is "Trade Relations with Bulgaria, Poland, and Latvia". Xaver Haas, Haas Fertigbau GmbH, presents wood, the material of short distances, as exemplified by a logging company in the Czech Republic.
Speakers will take questions from the audience after the lectures and during the panel discussion led by Dr. Hans M. Götzl, Straubinger Tagblatt (the local newspaper).

Information and registration: C.A.R.M.E.N., Carmen Weber, e-mail: cw@carmen-ev.de. The programme is available on the internet. Registration is necessary by March 15th, 2004. The fee of 15 euros is charged at registration in advance of the forum.

BioFach 2004, the world's leading trade fair for organic products, takes place in Nuremberg from February 19th to 22nd, 2004. C.A.R.M.E.N. is in charge of the organisation of a joint stand on bioplastics, uniting ten international exhibitors in hall 6, stand no. 223.
Bioplastics are ideally suitable for the production and packaging of organic products. Being biodegradable and mostly also compostable, bioplastics can be re-integrated into the natural materials cycle.
On the BioFach trade fair, C.A.R.M.E.N. will be presenting starch bags to facilitate the handling of biowaste. These bags on the basis of corn starch are fully compostable and more tear-resistant than paper, thus making a hygienic waste collection possible. The background of this is the "Straubing Model Project" for enforcing the German-wide introduction of compostable biowaste bags.
Ten international companies are presenting themselves together with C.A.R.M.E.N. at the stand. BASF AG, Ludwigshafen, FukR-Kunststoff GmbH, Willich, Novamont GmbH, Eschborn, and Rodenburg-BioPolymers, Oosterhout (from the Netherlands), are introducing bioplastics for numerous fields of application.
Zerzog GmbH & Co. KG, Ottobrunn, and natura Verpackungs GmbH, Rheine, are presenting packagings made of biodegradable materials, natura also tableware and bags made of biodegradable materials.
Bags and films are also in the focus of Wentus Kunststoff GmbH, Hoexter. BayWa Agrar Gartenbau, Munich, is presenting compostable mulch films for agriculture and gardening. A disposal system for packagings made of biodegradable materials will be introduced by Interserroh GmbH, Cologne. Pronovial, Reims (France), collects and distributes information about markets for regenerative products.
A free brochure bearing the title "Mater-Bi - A Biodegradable Alternative to Conventional Plastics" is available at C.A.R.M.E.N. in English language. Moreover, C.A.R.M.E.N. will this year publish the third edition of the certainly most comprehensive and most up-to-date volume on bioplastics at present: Biokunststoffe ("Bioplastics", in German language). It can be ordered in advance at a price of 37.45 euros (plus post and packaging).

Information: C.A.R.M.E.N., Dr. Bettina Schmidt, Schulgasse 18, D-94315 Straubing, Tel.: +49-9421-960-300, Fax: -333, e-mail: bs@carmen-ev.de and NürnbergMesse (http://www.biofach.de).

World Biomass Conference in Rome

The second World Conference and Technology Exhibition on Biomass for Energy, Industry, and Climate Protection takes place in Rome from May 10th to 14th, 2004.
Current trends of biomass utilisation will be presented. An exchange of information between scientists, political decision-makers, and experts is being offered.
C.A.R.M.E.N. is presently preparing a joint stand for the World Conference. All companies willing to present themselves on an international platform are invited to contact C.A.R.M.E.N. by March 19th, 2004. The following companies, associations, and organisations have already secured their exhibition spaces:
Loibl Anlagenbau, Fachagentur Nachwachsende Rohstoffe, FNR (Agency of Renewable Resources), Union zur Förderung von Oel- und Proteinpflanzen e.V., ufop (Union for the Promotion of Oil and Protein Plants), biomasse GmbH, and C.A.R.M.E.N.

Information and registration: C.A.R.M.E.N., Walter Wallrapp, e-mail: contact@carmen-ev.de and http://www.conference-biomass.com.

Biomass in Japan, Biomass Forum in Japan

The Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) "Kyushu Biomass Forum" was recently founded in Japan. This association is the co-ordinating agency for biomass use on the island of Kyushu. The size of the island compares to that of Bavaria. Kyushu is more densely populated but also characterised by agriculture.
In December 2002, the Japanese government agreed on an overall strategy for biomass use in Japan ("Biomass Nippon"). Several biomass projects have already been funded on that basis. In spite of comparably good biomass resources and the funding programme in Kyushu, it is still essential to convince the people living there of the advantages of biomass and to provide comprehensive information. For that reason, the "Kyushu Biomass Forum" plans to organise events and to provide the media and the general public with all relevant and pertinent information about biomass.
At present, the association has got about 50 members from industry, several organisations, agriculture, research centres, and institutions. On the occasion of the foundation ceremony, C.A.R.M.E.N.'s guiding principles for sustainability were presented to the Japanese public. This can be ascribed to friendly relations with C.A.R.M.E.N. that have lasted since the year 2001.
The C.A.R.M.E.N. team congratulated on the foundation of the forum.

Biodiesel in Japan

One of the founders of the Biomass Forum, the Japanese Fuji, who is very active in the field of biomass, has committed herself to promoting the use of biodiesel in Japan.
She wrote a book about the history of biodiesel use in Japan, which is unfortunately only available in Japanese language. This is a short summary:
In Japan, the beginnings of biodiesel use differed from those in Germany. In the 70s, a women's group advocated protective measures to improve the alarming state of the largest Japanese lake, Lake "Biwa". From that time on, used cooking oil from households has been collected and recycled into natural soap. Used cooking oil was no longer discharged into the lake but served as a raw material for washing powder that was phosphate-free. Soon, the Japanese industry also began to produce washing powders that were phosphate-free so that the demand for this natural product decreased.

On a trip to Germany, the idea was born to produce biodiesel from biogenic oils. After some experimenting, it was possible to produce biodiesel for powering tractors. This example was imitated and marked the beginning of a little "revolution". Biodiesel grew more and more popular so that the availability of used cooking oil as a raw material reached its limits. In Japan, more land is set aside than in Germany. So more and more Japanese municipalities now cultivate rapeseed for biodiesel production on set-aside land.

Contact and information about both articles on Japan: C.A.R.M.E.N., Dr. Bettina Schmidt, e-mail: bs@carmen-ev.de.

Engine Oil for Diesel Engines with Particulate Filters

In the future, diesel engines with particulate filters will increasingly be used for passenger cars, lorries, and buses in order to ensure compliance with Euro 4 emissions standards. Engine oils with low ash contents are particularly suited to assure a long service life of the particulate filter. Fuchs Petrolub AG company, Mannheim, offers a zinc-free all-synthetic engine oil especially for vehicles with particulate filters. Such engine oils are produced by means of fully saturated synthetic esters of vegetable oil. Synthetic esters are marked by their high viscosity index that gives the oils a distinct "multigrade" character.
It is to be expected that due to their technical properties biolubricants will not only continue to serve as biodegradable lubricants but will also open up more and more new fields of application.
Information: C.A.R.M.E.N., Hubert Maierhofer, E-Mail: hm@carmen-ev.de.

Renewable Energies

According to the Verband der Elektrizitätswirtschaft e.V., VDEW (German Electricity Association), approximately 8 per cent (about 45 billion kWh) of the German electricity consumption were provided by renewable energies in 2003. The share of water power decreased by about 15 per cent because of the dry period. This was compensated with wind power. Despite bad wind conditions it was possible to increase the generation of wind energy by building new wind power stations.
Approximately 13 per cent (about 5.6 billion kWh) of this regenerative electricity were produced in biomass- and waste-fuelled power plants.

Source: Verband der Elektrizitätswirtschaft e.V., February 2nd, 2004 (http://www.strom.de).

The Bavarian Minister of Agriculture, Josef Miller, recently awarded a label for biodiesel to the lorry fleet of WLS GmbH company. WLS GmbH is a logistics company exclusively in charge of the procurement and distribution of all food and non-food articles of McDonald's Germany and Luxembourg.
The complete fleet has been biodiesel-powered since the year 2000 (see nawaros® 04/03). About 130 lorries supply 1,227 McDonald's restaurants per day.
The WLS fleet covers a distance of approximately 15 million kilometres per year. The Bavarian Minister of Agriculture praised the use of environment-friendly biodiesel. He called WLS company a model for the responsible use of resources and expressed his hope that this example would be imitated by many others.
Due to the fact that biodiesel has got the same chemical properties as solvents and lubricants, the engine oil gets diluted so that oil changes are required more often. Shorter maintenance cycles and additional costs are the results, but because of much better exhaust figures and the positive effect on the environment the company accepts these additional costs.

Information: http://www.biodiesel.de/index.php3?hid=00820 or directly under http://www.wls-logistic.de.

Discourse on Sustainability

In his book Nachhaltigkeit als politische und analytische Kategorie ('Sustainability as a Political and Analytical Category'), the author Jörg Tremmel discusses the concept of sustainability in Germany. He concentrates on the following questions: Which groups of stakeholders want to define sustainability? Are there any definitions that are not guided by special interests? Which definition is going to be generally accepted?
He analyses more than 60 concepts of sustainability of various scientists. To simplify matters, two positions can be contrasted, a strict one and a broad one.
The strict definition bases on the steady state concept: "we should not fell more trees than grow up again". Particularly maintained by ecologists, this position is considered as an ecopolitical guiding principle. The broad definition has got several equal pillars such as ecological, economic, and social ones.
The strict concept is increasingly superseded. Environmental science and ecological movement are confronted by the decision to use the term only with an explaining adjective, then talking of "ecological sustainability", or to introduce a new guiding concept.
The book is obtainable at a price of 20 euros at the bookseller's (ISBN 3-936581-14-2) or directly at the publishing house oekom Verlag, Munich, e-mail: kontakt@oekom.de.

Bionics Contest

Over millions of years, nature has developed solutions posing much challenge to today's scientists. The preservation of resources and closed cycles of materials have always been basic principles for plants and animals in nature. Recycling and materials saving make heavy demands on man and technology.
By means of photosynthesis, plants make use of solar energy. Cobwebs are amazing constructions, providing high stability. The bats' ultrasonic location system has made its entry into aircraft and automobile construction. The lotus plant's self-cleaning ability is used in façade construction.
Bionics is a science dealing with the transfer of problem solutions from nature. So it bridges a gap between biology, physics, and technology. By means of the ideas competition "Bionik - Innovationen aus der Natur" ('Bionics - Innovations from Nature'), the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) now encourages companies, universities, and research institutions to develop ideas into novel approaches in bionics.
There is a two-stage procedure. In the first step, idea sketches have to be handed in by March 12th, 2004. In the second step, the participants whose project sketches were chosen are called upon to apply formally.
The Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH (Research Centre Jülich) is in charge of the funding programme. Further information can be obtained there.

Contact: Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH / Außenstelle Berlin, Wallstraße 17-22, D-10179 Berlin, Tel.: +49-30-20199-466; Fax: -470, e-mail: c.junge@fz-juelich.de (http://www.fz-juelich.de/ptj).