With the world's oil reserves running out, the pressure is on to produce '"home-grown" biodiesel to keep our vehicles running. In light of this, Northern Ireland farmers are carrying out their own methods of drilling for oil, by sowing crops which can be turned into fuel. A field of oilseed rape near cookstown is currently producing a crop of vehicle fuel oil as the bright yellow flowers are packed with tiny black oil seeds. Overseeing this Government funded trial at Loughry campus is crop technologist Stephen Bell, from the College of Food, Agriculture and Rural Enterprise. "We are expecting a yield of three tonnes of these little seeds to the hectare which will equate with driving an average car about 12,000 miles."
It is still early days in the project, but interest in planting oil seed crops is increasing. A latest survey shows a recorded 300% rise. Keen to see how this locally produced biodiesel will perform in standard engines, engineering workshops at Greenmount campus near Antrim are carrying out a series of tests. An open day is also planned for interested farmers on 23 August 2007, where more than 500 are expected to attend. It is hoped that the biodiesel project will help to reduce the industry's carbon output which is estimated at 250,000 tonnes annually. The first target will be a 10% reduction in all the energy used in order to fit in with a Government target of reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 25% by 2025.
The Treasury has already announced that farmers can produce and use 2,500 litres of home-grown fuel a year which will be exempt from duty, a factor that has sparked considerable interest among the agricultural sector.
