Micobes could provide a clean, renewable energy
source and use up carbon dioxide in the process,
suggests Dr James Chong at a Science Media Centre
press briefing. Methanogens are microbes called
archaea that are similar to bacteria. They are
responsible for the vast majority of methane
produced on earth by living things says Dr Chong
from York University. They use carbon dioxide
to make methane, the major flammable component
of natural gas. So methanogens could be used
to make a renewable, carbon neutral gas substitute.
Methanogens produce about one billion tones
of methane every year. They thrive in oxygen-free
environments like the guts of cows and sheep,
humans and even termites. They live in swamps,
bogs and lakes. Increased human activity causes
methane emissions to rise because methanogens
grow well in rice paddies, sewage processing
plants and landfill sites, which are all made
by humans.
Methanogens could feed on waste from farms,
food and even our homes to make biogas. This
is done in Europe, but very little in the UK.
The government is now looking at microbes as
a source of fuel and as a way to tackle food
waste in particular.
Methane is a greenhouse gas that is 23 times
more effective at trapping heat than carbon
dioxide. By using methane produced by bacteria
as a fuel source, we can reduce the amount released
into the atmosphere and use up some carbon dioxide
in the
process.
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