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Project Biogasboot Beëindigd

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Over the past years at De Ceuvel, we have worked very hard on the realisation of our Biogas boat. Thanks to the help of many volunteers, our team and various partners we managed to come a long way with the project. We converted an old houseboat into a deck barge, reused asphalt, and built a fermentation installation.

What we found was that if we wanted to obtain the permit for this fermentation plant, we would be obligated to officially become a fermentation company. This would have far-reaching consequences for the rest of De Ceuvel in terms of regulations. That is why we put the project on hold since last year, even though the installation was technically ready.

Unfortunately, on January 2 due to a faulty pump, the rainwater that was supposed to be driven away turned and sank the boat. The boat itself has been taken out of the water, but the damage to the boat and the installation, in combination with the fact that the realization of the permit is still very challenging, has led us to decide that it will be the end for project Biogas Boat at De Ceuvel.

This of course was devastating. No one likes to throw the towel into the ring of a project that has spent so much time, money, work and love in it. We comfort ourselves with the knowledge that a number of very nice things have come out of the project. The Biogas boat has served as inspiration for the New Sanitation project in Buiksloterham. Waternet will upgrade local sewer water into nutrients and energy with a floating bio-digester. A research project was also launched with the AUAS to investigate the best possibilities for reusing organic waste flows in the city.

We would like to thank everyone who contributed to this project: and especially all our volunteers, Metabolic, ENKI-energy, A46K, BAM, Woodies at Berlin, DOEN Foundation, Triodos Foundation, Municipality of Amsterdam and of course the crowd funders.