The Totally Green Potential of Bio Energy for Sri Lanka

By Eng Parakrama Jayasinghe
(Email: parajayasinghe@gmail.com)

The true nature and potential of Bio Energy in Sri Lanka is unique. It has the advantage of a sustainable use of biomass, as a renewable resource for energy, including power generation. It is incorrect to surmise that Sri Lanka is too small with a dearth of lands for plantations, or will be confronted with deforestation; be saddled with a high cost of maintaining of energy plantations; or the undesirability of monoculture plantations. Sri Lanka is fortunate that it has the options available in harnessing its bio energy without any detrimental effects. Here we have to salute the pioneering work of late Vidya Jothi Dr Ray Wijewardene and Eng P G Joseph. They who tirelessly showed the way over the past several decades to create the awareness that Sri Lanka is uniquely placed to generate sustainable renewable bio energy, using sustainably grown, short rotation coppicing tree species such as Gliricidia Sepium, with multiple benefits spanning many sectors. These efforts are yet to be appreciated adequately.

The Unique Opportunity in

Sri Lanka for Bio Energy

To revert to the subject of Sustainable Bio Energy for Sri Lanka, I recommend that any one genuinely interested in understanding the true nature of Bio Energy potential in Sri Lanka should peruse the many articles available in the website of the Bio Energy Association of Sri Lanka www.bioenergysrilanka.lk . In particular the article “Bio Energy – The Ignored Indigenous Renewable Energy Resource” (https://www.bioenergysrilanka.lk/bio-energy-the-ignored-indigenous-renewable-energy-resource/) for brief introductory information. The research paper by late Dr Jayantha Gunethilaka, former Director of the Coconut Research Institute and others, amply demonstrates after practical trials, the multiple spin off benefits achievable by development of the Gliricidia cultivation. The energy component contributes only a small portion of this total as illustrated below.

Gliricidia – The Fourth National Plantation Crop

These efforts led to the Cabinet of Ministers to declare Gliricidia as the Fourth National Plantation Crop after Tea, Rubber and Coconut, in June 2005. This was done recognizing the multiple benefits of this wonder tree, with values far beyond that of a mere source of renewable energy.

The Report of the Inter-Ministerial Working Committee on Dendro Thermal Energy of 14th June 2005 concurrently with the above Cabinet decision resulted in the creation of the Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority by an Act No 35 in 2007 to be the apex body to regulate and develop the None Conventional Renewable Energy (NCRE) sector including the Bio Energy.

There was much hope that this multifaceted resource would be developed rapidly, not only for the purpose of weaning Sri Lanka away from overdependence on imported fossil fuels, particularly coal. There was some progress made albeit very slowly, due to the lack of appreciation among officials of the full potential and values, spanning many sectors as illustrated below.

The progress made up to the end of 2015, by which time a number of bio energy power projects fueled by Gliricidia, had clearly dispelled the fears often expressed, as none of these power plants depended on any energy plantations. All of them have used bio mass fuels delivered by thousands of farmers from Gliricidia trees grown in fences, pepper plantations, alley cropping with other cash crops, etc. So fears of deforestation, extensive use of lands meant for other agricultural activities were totally baseless. The UNFCCC has accepted Biomass as a carbon neutral resource for power generation and nothing further needs to be said on that count. The fund flow to the rural farmers over the years amounted to several Billions of rupees.

Future Development of

Renewable Energy

Over 80 MW of Dendro projects in various stages of approval are in the pipeline, but delay on the part of government bodies has led to loss of interest of the investors and developers. Thereby they would have prevented the flow of Billions of Rupees to the rural economy as well as the saving of the equivalent amounts of foreign exchange. The flow of funds that was thus blocked from flowing to the rural farmers is over Rs 5400 Million annually from these blocked projects alone. The potential for more projects of similar nature is many fold estimated as 2400 MW by the ADB , with the consequent benefits running to Billions more.

Bio Energy has none of the so called disadvantages of sources such as Solar and Wind often cited by the skeptics to deter their wide development, being a firm and dispatcheable source of power, as any fossil fuel based power generation. The supply of biomass by farmers is a wonderful resources that Mother Nature has endowed the people of this country. It is time for the country to give Bio Energy initiatives due recognition by incorporating it in the nomenclature of the State Ministry of Renewable Energy.