Research Reports
Prospect of Production and Utilization of Energy in the Rural Sector and Strategies for Introducing Clean Energy Farming System
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AuthorKim, Yeanjung
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Publication Date2011.11.30
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Original
Clean energy can be used for farming activities and replace fossil fuels. In Korea, geothermal and air source heat pumps, biogas plants, and wood pellets are currently available for use in the agriculture sector. These energy sources are expected to play an important role in the future as they can provide direct and indirect benefits in terms of economy, productivity, and environmental aspects.
The clean energy industry in the agricultural sector is at its initial stage of development. The growth rate of geothermal manufactures in terms of number of companies is stagnant, and the disbribution of clean energy is not all that active. To expand the use of renewable energy, the role of the government is important and bioenergy projects should be expanded. In addition, surveys found that technological improvement and farmers' will to reduce the cost are important factors.
The government plans to expand the use of clean energy as an alternative energy source to replace fossil fuels and, as part of this plan, it is promoting various pilot projects and policies such as the low-carbon green growth policy.
According to a survey of farmers, the economy of geothermal and air source heat pumps is higher than that of the currently used fuels. The survey has also found that although wood pellets are economically infeasible because of high raw material cost, they are more effective in improving productivity and quality. However, there is a problem in that the initial installation cost is high due to lack of technical skills related to construction and operation, and the effect of its use is highly uncertain. Especially because there is no infrastructure for installation, operation, and follow-up control of clean energy facilities, the production and use of clean energy is limited.
The government is conducting a pilot project, "Low Carbon, Green Village Development Project," in rural areas. The Deungyong village of Buan, a private sector-led energy self-sufficient town, is a successful case of a bio-energy project. The town has installed power generation facilities using solar energy. In addition, it has been supplying a variety of clean energy using solar power plants, solar water heaters, small wind powers, boilers of wood pellets, and geothermal heat pumps for heating and supply of hot water to houses, offices, restaurants and an education building in the town. This case is a typical successful project as the villagers were interested in energy saving and self-sufficiency.
There are many cases of biomass villages in advanced countries, such as Jühnde and Achental of Germany, Samsø of Denmark, Kuzumaki of Japan and so on. The keys to the success of these villages are increase in business efficiency through government support for renewable energy projects, voluntary participation of local residents, and maximization of available resources.
A clean energy system should be established for sustainable agriculture in the rural sector. For the system, this study estimated the possible amount of renewable energy that can be supplied by photovoltaic, solar, hydro, wind, geothermal, and bio-energy for different rural regions and classified the regions according to the type of clean energy source a rural region can utilize. An example of the first type is Gimje in Jeollabuk-do, a rural city with plenty of agricultural byproducts. The Inje county in Gangwondo was chosen as an example of the second type because the county is rich in forest byproducts. Hongseong County in Chungcheongnamdo has plenty of livestock waste and was chosen as the example for the third type.
According to the analysis of this study, the government first needs to identify the characteristics of nature in rural areas. Secondly, it is necessary to find out what clean energy sources are available and put them into a database. Thirdly, local residents should be actively involved in bio-energy projects. A variety of programs should be developed for continued education, discussion, and public relations improvement. Fourth, a mid- and long-term goal should be made after investigating what natural resources are available. Finally, it is important that the government and local residents enhance cooperation, individual responsibilities and obligations for energy conservation and clean energy use. And the central government should establish a long-term clean energy policy.
Researchers: Yean-Jung Kim, Hyun-Tae Park, Chang-Yong Kang, Ki-Hwan Park, Dae-Heum Gwon, Hye-Sung Han, Woong-Yeon Lee.
E-mail address: yjkim@krei.re.kr
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