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For immediate release
For Further Information contact:
Leanne Wilcox
email: admin@peakfood.co.uk
New Harvesting Machine set to help fight Climate Change
Details were released today of a new machine that could help
solve the problem of climate change. A diagram of the machine
was posted on internet site www.peakfood.co.uk at 6:00 this
morning.
“Basically, it replaces the present combine harvester,” says
its inventor, East Yorkshire farmer, John Gossop. “By
harvesting crops intact - that is the straw and the grain
together –after first swathing or spraying with roundup to reduce moisture content, we can effectively utilise the annual 1.8 billion
acres of straw worldwide for energy purposes. At present much
of this straw returns to the land releasing CO² back to the
atmosphere without benefit. Because the energy and labour
inputs up to harvest are the same whether the straw is
utilised or not, the straw is a free asset at that point.
This straw could be used for electricity production or
cellulosic ethenol.”
Mr Gossop is not completely unknown in the farming community.
Already an award-winning inventor, he has seen a previous
farming invention manufactured commercially and set up a web
site to consider the threats to future food security. In
addition to this he wrote the book, Famine in the West, which
was recently described by Farmer’s Weekly’s David Richardson
as “impressive” and “thoroughly researched with obvious
rigour;” and by eminent writer and broadcaster, Jonathon
Porritt as “compelling, providing us with a robust and
authoritative antidote to the dangerously irrelevant ‘business
as usual’ bull**** that dominates so much of today’s debate
about the future of farming.”
So, can we all relax now, and stop worrying about global
warming? Unfortunately not.
“The change to intact harvesting with local processing
facilities would need considerable investment and possible
government backing,” says John. “But the advantage of lower
costs to farmers with additional output would be very
worthwhile and a necessary step in obtaining more of our
energy from the sun. We need to put pressure on Defra
(Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) to at
least consider the idea. If we don’t take action like this
very soon, it will be too late, and the environmental
consequences will be both devastating and irreversible.”
Those who can see potential in an intact harvesting system are
asked to lobby Defra. Contact information is available on
www.peakfood.co.uk/intact-harvester/
John Gossop is also looking for assistance in commercialising
the harvester.
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July 25th, 2007 at 5:34 pm
Wouldn’t this deplete the soils irreversibly? Without renewing the soils with the constant removal of harvested straw, how long could the soil last?
Even worse, the implication is that we can continue to create energy, thereby continuing our present course and civilization - which is what caused the resource destruction and energy depletion and overpopulation and on and on in the first place!
Sure, we might get a few more years - but SHOULD WE?
July 26th, 2007 at 6:17 pm
Thanks for your comment!
Studies have shown that small amounts of organic matter on the soil surface are more effective then large amounts plowed under, which decay more quickly. We also need to return nutrients to the soil instead of flushing them down the city sewers.
There is more then enough solar energy for all our needs if we use it properly