East Midlands Airport to be carbon neutral by 2012

2nd April 2010

East Midlands Airport to run on Bio-Mass Fuel.

East Midlands Airport has taken the first steps in a plan to become the first Airport in the UK  to produce fuel for its operations.

During the next three years, farm land near the Airport at Hemington Village, will be planted with willow trees.The first of many trees, which were grown locally, have been planted this week, on the previously fallow land.

Twenty six hectares, which equates to around 52 football pitches, has been earmarked for the project.The 26-hectare farm will be planted and harvested in phases over the next three years to ensure a continual crop of willow to power a bio-mass boiler.

An Airport spokesman stated that it is hoped that within three years, part of the terminal building could potentially fuelled by the harvested willow. Around 280 tonnes of willow are hoped to be produced a year which would cut emmissions by around 350 tonnes.

Once cut down, the wood would be reduced to woodchip, or compacted into bricks for burning. The willow trees are expected to be harvested once every three years, which would provide a continual source, and willow was chosen as it is a prolific grower.

It is part of the airport's plan to become carbon neutral by 2012, the idea of which was first announced in 2005 and the use of bio-methane fuel to operate passenger buses is being researched.

Fears about birds nesting in and around the trees, which in turn could cause danger to Aircraft, have been allayed after a spokesman for the Airport said that bird scarers are in use on flight approaches and runways.