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Economic, Environmental and Moral Acceptance of Renewable Energy: A Case Study—The Agricultural Biogas Plant at Pěčín

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Abstract

The production of renewable energy in agricultural biogas plants is being widely criticized because—among other things—most of the feedstock comes from purpose-grown crops like maize. These activities (generously subsidized in the Czech Republic) generate competitive pressure to other crops that are used for feeding or food production, worsening their affordability. Unique pretreatment technology that allows substitution of the purpose-grown crops by farming residues (such as husk or straw) was built 6 years ago on a commercial basis in Pěčín (Czech Republic) under modest funding and without publicity. The design of the concept; financial assessment and moral viewpoint were analyzed based on practical operating data. It showed that the apparatus improves economic, environmental and moral acceptance as well. However, according to the government’s view, public funding for this type of processing was shortened, “because waste materials represent a lower cost”. The impact of such governance was analyzed as well.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Expertness and Valuation, The Institute of Technology and Businesses in České Budějovice, Okružní 517/10, 370 01, Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic

    Marek Vochozka & Anna Maroušková

  2. Faculty of Management and Informatics, University of Žilina, Univerzitná 8215/1, 010 26, Zilina, Slovak Republic

    Petr Šuleř

Authors
  1. Marek Vochozka
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  2. Anna Maroušková
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  3. Petr Šuleř
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Correspondence to Marek Vochozka.

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Vochozka, M., Maroušková, A. & Šuleř, P. Economic, Environmental and Moral Acceptance of Renewable Energy: A Case Study—The Agricultural Biogas Plant at Pěčín. Sci Eng Ethics 24, 299–305 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-017-9881-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-017-9881-7

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