A government minister was blown away when he got behind the wheel of a poo-powered car for a test-drive.
Greg Barker, Minister at Department of Energy and Climate Change, drove the Bio-Bug – the UK’s first VW Beetle that runs on gas from sewage sludge.
Green company GENeco took the car to the European Biofuels Expo and Conference (EBEC) in Warwickshire and it was among several alternatively fuelled cars on display.
There was much interest in the biomethane powered car, which is able to run for a year on gas produced from human waste flushed down the toilets of just 70 homes.
And Mr Barker, who said it was fantastic to see a car running on biogas, was keen to learn more about the sustainable powered vehicle.
GENeco general manager Mohammed Saddiq said: “Mr Barker was eager to get in the driving seat and was able to see for himself that the Bio-Bug drives like any conventional vehicle.
“Government support for renewable energy initiatives such as this one is essential if we are to find a sustainable replacement for fossil fuels which we so heavily rely on in the UK.
“Since the Bio-Bug was launched there has been worldwide interest in the car with many focusing on its performance and how the process works.
“We believe that using biomethane in vehicles is just one way of putting this important source of green energy to good use and reducing our impact on the environment.”
The Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association (ADBA) said the launch of the Bio-Bug proved that biomethane from sewage sludge could be used as an alternative fuel for vehicles.
ADBA chairman Lord Rupert Redesdale said: “This is a very exciting and forward-thinking project demonstrating the myriad benefits of anaerobic digestion (AD).
“Biomethane cars could be just as important as electric cars, and the water regulator Ofwat should promote the generation of as much biogas as possible through sewage works in the fight against climate change.”
GENeco, a Wessex Water company, produces around 18 million cubic metres of biogas a year at Bristol sewage treatment works.
It is generated through anaerobic digestion – a process in which bugs in the absence of oxygen break down biodegradable material to produce methane.
GENeco said if all of the biogas produced at its Avonmouth plant was used to fuel vehicles it would avoid 19,000 tonnes of CO2 being put into the atmosphere.
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