The countryside could provide the perfect place to grow biofuel crops, a report will suggest, as the UK continues to seek sustainable energy sources.
In a project due to be launched by the Energy Technology Institute (ETI), researchers are expecting to discover that one-tenth of Britain’s green land, including moor land, could be used to harvest crops for biofuel.
The ETI project will analyse various sites around the UK, including semi-industrial areas, to determine what the quality of soil is and whether crops could successfully be grown.
A recent report by the Natural Environment Research Council has already suggested that England could hold up to five million hectares of land suitable for biofuel.
The UK government has pledged to support the development of bioenergy in a bid to reduce the nation’s dependence on unsustainable fossil fuels such as oil, gas and coal.
However, proposals to create biofuel fields within the rural countryside have not been wholly welcomed by wildlife campaigners who are concerned that bioenergy could damage biodiversity.
A spokesman from Protect Rural England told the Guardian that the "monocultural" landscape required to grow crops will affect existing species that depend upon the diversity of the land.
The construction of biofuel plants could, however, be beneficial to the manufacturing industry as it will create employment and opportunities for export.
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