Latest news with #EULIFE
Business Wire
10 hours ago
- Business
- Business Wire
Finnish Fiberwood Secures €3.1M EU Grant to Scale Carbon-Storing Building Materials
JÄRVENPÄÄ, Finland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Finnish deep tech startup Fiberwood Ltd has secured €3.1 million in funding from the EU LIFE Programme to reduce buildings' carbon footprints. The company will use the grant to scale up its sustainable insulation solutions made from wood industry side streams and accelerate its entry into broader European markets. 'We believe forests deserve smarter use,' says CEO Tage Johansson. 'We're turning side streams into something more valuable." Share By refining underutilised materials such as mechanical wood residues and recycled wood into high-performance components, Fiberwood adds value to the forest industry and promotes circular use of timber. Its plastic-free, recyclable fibre boards can replace fossil-based insulation in construction and support the EU's transition to low-emission building practices. Tackling a Global Challenge in Construction The construction sector accounts for 42% of global greenhouse gas emissions. In the EU, most insulation materials are still fossil-based, and over 98% end up in landfills or the environment. While demand for greener alternatives is rising, many bio-based options fall short of technical requirements. Fiberwood aims to bridge that gap. Founded in 2019, the company has developed a patented technology to produce recyclable and compostable boards with thermal performance, structural durability, fire safety, moisture resistance, and material longevity. This rare combination opens new possibilities for sustainable design. 'We believe forests deserve smarter use,' says CEO Tage Johansson. 'We're turning side streams into high-performance materials that meet real construction needs while reducing environmental impact.' Backed by the EU to Accelerate Market Readiness Fiberwood is building a demo production line in Järvenpää, southern Finland, to enable deliveries for customers' pilot projects. The €3.1M EU LIFE grant supports production optimisation, new side-stream validation, and final performance testing, resulting in a blueprint for Fiberwood's first industrial-scale factory. The company's B2B customers include leading building materials companies in Nordic and European markets. They will integrate the fibre components into their existing products and sell them under their own brands. 'This is a turning point,' Johansson says. 'Our material allows customers to make a sustainable leap without changing how they design or sell their products, giving them a competitive edge with minimal disruption.' Before securing LIFE funding, Fiberwood had raised €10.7 million from investors such as Metsä Spring, Stephen Industries, and public innovation funds. The company is preparing for international growth and seeking partners across the European construction value chain. About Fiberwood Fiberwood is a Finnish deep tech company refining wood industry side streams into sustainable, high-performance building and packaging materials. Its customised fibre components reduce buildings' carbon footprints and support the shift to fossil-free construction. Founded in 2019, Fiberwood serves B2B customers across the Nordic and European building materials sector and is ramping up its first demo production line for pilot projects. Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are, however, those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or CINEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
Irish Independent
02-05-2025
- Irish Independent
Birdwatching outing to Wicklow's East Coast Nature Reserve
Officially opened in 2009, the East Coast Nature Reserve covers 92ha and forms part of the extensive Murrough Wetlands, an important coastal wetland complex which is designated as a Special Protection Area and Special Area of Conservation. Following management through an EU LIFE project between 2003 and 2007, the reserve offers a variety of habitats, from rare fen to wet grasslands to birch woodland, which can all be explored on foot through marked walking trails and observation hides. The outing takes place on Sunday, May 11, at 7am and will see the Wicklow Brach team up with National Parks and Wildlife staff for an early morning stroll around the East Coast Nature Reserve. The walk will be slow with many stops to listen to the birds ad will run for an hour to an hour and a half. Participants are asked to dress for the weather and to wear waterproof shoes as the route surfaces are a mix of grass and board walk. It should be noted that dogs are not permitted. Potential attendees are also advised that there is very limited parking available at the East Coast Nature Reserve, so car pooling, where possible, is recommended. Parking is also available in Newcastle village, which is a 1.5k walk, or at the sea end of Sea Road, which involves a 0.5k walk. The meeting point for the event is at the entrance to the East Coast Nature Reserve for 7am.
BBC News
04-04-2025
- General
- BBC News
Rathlin Island: Conservationists confident over ferret removal
Conservationists working to protect Rathlin Island's at-risk seabirds believe they have rid the island of its invasive ferret in 2021, the five-year £4.5m the LIFE Raft project has been working to eradicate rats and ferrets from the island off the north Antrim the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), who run the project, have told local councillors they are "optimistic" the ferret population on Rathlin has been eradicated."To date, there has been 98 ferrets caught, and from November 2023 there have been no confirmed ferret sightings," the project's fieldwork manager Michael Rafferty told Causeway Coast and Glens council earlier this week. Rathlin Island is only six miles wide and one mile long, with a population of about 150 is internationally renowned as home to puffins and other seabirds including razorbills, kittiwakes, Manx shearwaters, guillemots and bird numbers had been in decline over recent years, sparking fears among conservationists. Both ferrets and rats prey on the eggs and young of the vulnerable bird species which use the island's cliffs for breeding. Mr Rafferty told councillors ferrets were possibly introduced in the 1980s to control rabbit numbers, and since then had done "tremendous damage to ground-nesting birds"."In just a few days one adult ferret managed to kill 27 adult birds, just by gaining access to a puffin colony," he team behind the LIFE Raft project have deployed traps and a detection dog in efforts to control ferret numbers. Mr Rafferty said, in terms of tackling ferret numbers, it had gone well and "we are quite optimistic that things are looking good, although it's not confirmed that the ferret is eradicated yet".Efforts to tackle the brown rat population were started in September last year, he added, and that is "ongoing".The £4.5m LIFE Raft project is funded by EU LIFE, National Lottery Heritage Fund, Garfield Weston Foundation and DAERA.
