UMaine mentioned in Press Herald article on Maine exporting wood chips to Europe
The University of Maine was mentioned in a Portland Press Herald article about how Maine is poised to begin shipping wood chips to Europe for power generation next year if plans underway at Eastport and Searsport stay on track. Since wood can carry invasive insects, European Union regulations require all imported wood be heat-treated to kill bugs, according to the article. Suppliers need to receive government certification of their process, called phytosanitation. In Eastport, the port authority has been working with Maine-based Phyto Charter, a company that has been working with UMaine to develop a patent-pending system of heating the wood after it’s loaded into the hulls of chip carriers. Once loaded into cargo ships, the chip containers are hooked up to a blower system that delivers heated air that kills any stowaway pests, the article states.