Good Practice Category: Economy

Integrated biomass use is an NRP-funded project that develops a new method for decentralized energy generation from any non-wood biomass (patent pending Europe-wide).From the biomass available in large quantities, either electricity, heat or animal feed is produced in three different processes. The innovation consists in the first-time combination of plants already available on the market, such as a grass press, a grass drying plant, a machine for producing pellets, two biogas plants (a wet plant and a drying plant), and an incinerator. This innovative combination creates a multiple benefit in the form of electricity, heat, heating pellets or pellets as animal feed.The following benefits are created for companies or the region:• Production of electricity, heat, heating pellets and pellets for animal feed from indigenous solid and liquid biomass.• Combination of different components available on the market into an integrated plant for efficient use and complete recycling of biomass.• Downsizing of the large-scale plant to mass-producible compact biomass plants for decentralized application -> Natel Effect• Maintenance and creation of new jobs for the region (farmers, trade)

Pellet technology provides an environmentally friendly and sustainable alternative to fossil fuels for small to medium sized furnaces. Today, pellets are produced from wood residues from the wood industry with a correspondingly costly procurement of raw materials. A new approach is to produce pellets directly from forest wood. However, there are hardly any empirical data and studies available on this. The Unesco Biosphere Entlebuch (UBE) and the Napfgebiet have the raw material potential, the regional economic structures and logistically suitable location factors for pellet production from forest wood. The "Forest Wood Pellet Feasibility Study in the RegioHER" is a comprehensive approach to finding solutions that include the highest possible regional added value:• The feasibility study, which follows a holistic approach and meets the requirements of a basis for decision making for a preliminary project, has been developed• Regional potentials are identified and taken into account in the solution concept in the best possible way.• Different variants are objectively comparable with the help of suitable assessment instruments.Pellet technology provides an environmentally friendly and sustainable alternative to fossil fuels for small to medium-sized combustion plants. Today, pellets are produced from wood residues from the wood industry with a correspondingly costly procurement of raw materials.A new approach is to produce pellets directly from forest wood. However, there are hardly any empirical data and studies available on this.Unesco Biosphere Entlebuch (UBE) has the raw material potential, the regional economic structures and logistically suitable location factors for pellet production from forest wood. The "Forest Wood Pellet Feasibility Study Unesco Biosphere Entlebuch" is a holistic approach to finding solutions that include the highest possible regional added value. This version is in line with the objectives of the UBE (CO2-neutral heating energy balance by 2020, see target picture UBE.

Phoster swimming platform is a startup ecosystem that markets floating plant filters.Planted floating platforms form a root filter system in the water, which supports the natural purification of the water. At the root surface, biological processes (biofilm) bind both particulate and dissolved substances in the water. The root surface reaches more than 100m^2 per m^2 of floating platform and is therefore much more efficient in absorbing substances than comparable methods on land. An additional advantage is the cleaning directly on the water surface. It is therefore not in competition with activities on land.Phoster swimming platforms are made of biodegradable materials and are clearly more environmentally friendly. A novelty is the concept of a completely organic structure. The products are cost-effective to build and operate. Their properties open up new markets in the fields of aquaponics systems, water stabilization and partial cleaning in artificial waters and facilities.The aesthetic aspect is also in the foreground. Thus, water purification should also be perceived as a design object in a pond and not just as a technical measure for purifying the water. Thus, in the development of swimming platforms, great attention is paid to their design. 1m^2 Phoster swimming platforms work just as efficiently as 5m^2 bank area or compensation area in swimming ponds. This makes it possible to create swimming ponds with biological water quality in a smaller area.

Strengthening Lucerne's sawmill industry through electricity production from waste wood is to create the prerequisites for the use of small-scale wood gasification plants for decentralized electricity and heat energy production at the Lucerne sawmills. In contrast to the large wood gasification plants/wood WKK plants, only locally available, natural resources (forest wood, residual wood) are to be processed. Within this circular economy, the raw material is a waste product from the sawmill operation.The wood gasification plants in the foreground for the present project are in the range of 30 kW - 50 kW electrical power. The thermal output is in the range of 100 kW. In a second phase of the project, a pilot plant is to be commissioned, followed by the diffusion of the technology in the region and throughout Switzerland.Basic principles of plant and process engineering; elaboration of specifications, detailed evaluation of plant type/manufacturer; utility value analysis and selection of product(s), clarification of legal principles.Standard operating concept and business plan; development of a standardised plant and operating concept tailored to the conditions in the sawmill operations and the associated business plan figures.Potential and added value; verification of ecological and economic potential for wood gasification plants in the canton of Lucerne and the whole of Switzerland. Calculation of regional value added effectsThe utility value analysis of the units and manufacturers in question has been completed. The choice was made for a product that has already been tried and tested in practice several times in Germany, Austria and Italy. The legal clarifications for the construction of the plants in Switzerland have begun. The standardized operating concepts, adapted to the typology of the Lucerne sawmills, are also in progress. The first approximate planning figures are available.

The project foresees that all buildings in Luthern will be connected to the glass fiber network by the end of 2022, but on a voluntary basis. Residents and businesses would have to contribute to the initial costs with a one-time connection fee. Subsequently, a monthly connection fee will be due, as is the case today with most cable connections (TV, telephone, etc.).

The Bike-Flowtrail in Marbach is a bike path for everyone, maintained by the Sportbahnen Marbachegg, as a new, attractive summer offer with bike transport by gondola. A “flow trail” can be ridden by trained bikers as well as by the whole family: the route, which follows the natural terrain, allows biking without braking in wide bends and thus triggers the feeling of a “flow” for bikers. In addition, this new offer counters the snow uncertainty for a ski area at just 1500 m because it attracts a new target group. In this way, the tourist added value, jobs in the community and the future of the Sportbahnen Marbachegg AG as a tourist driving force for the entire region are secured.