Eco entrepreneurs
BioRegional
MiniMills (UK) Ltd won Invention of the year at the Observer
Ethical Awards last month. The MiniMill uses straw to make paper,
which helps relieve pressure on world forests and also provides
a revolutionary treatment to efficiently turn its waste into energy
and chemicals for re-use in paper making.
The Observer Ethical award was
presented in June at a ceremony in central London, which rewarded
those doing their part for the planet. There were thousands of nominations
for the category, which sought entries from original, inventive
and ethically motivated consumer products. The MiniMill particularly
impressed the judges with the series of innovations that have been
developed over the last ten years, leading to the construction of
the working model. The panel, comprised of celebrities and experts
in sustainability, recognised the revolutionary implications for
paper making that the MiniMill offers.
BioRegional MiniMills (UK) Ltd
has also recently secured private funding and a DTI grant to complete
the industrial scale demonstration mill. An open day will be held
in early 2008, when it will be possible to see the technology in
action.
The technology can easily be installed
as a ‘bolt-on’ facility at an existing paper mill, or
as a complete small-scale mill near to the source of the material.
This means that surplus straw around the world can be used to make
quality printing and writing paper, reducing transport emissions
and easing pressure on the world’s forests. The technology
has been developed with an international market in mind, but is
equally applicable in the UK, where four million tonnes of waste
straw are produced annually.
By encouraging local production,
the MiniMill technology supports the development of local jobs and
industries and helps to reduce carbon related transport emissions.
A study by Surrey University shows that local pulp supply reduces
transport emissions by up to 90% when compared to imported pulp.
Sue Riddlestone, Managing Director,
said:
“we are delighted that the MiniMill has been recognised
by the Observer Ethical Awards. Wheat straw has been used to make
paper in the UK within living memory. The clean technology provided
by the MiniMill allows this excellent paper making material to be
used again, without harming the environment”.
BioRegional MiniMills were also
linked to the Observer’s Conservation Project of the year
award which went to Carshalton Lavender for their three acre community
heritage lavender fields in South London. Both BioRegional MiniMills
and Carshalton lavender were set up by environmental charity BioRegional
Development Group.
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