Biomass and Incineration – Page 5

Report: Wood pellet mills threaten public health in North Carolina

This article discusses a report issued by the Environmental Integrity Project that says that North Carolina state permits allow pellet factories to violate the intent of the Clean Air Act.

The U.S. South has fast become the world’s largest supplier of wood pellets, a rising source of fuel for power plants primarily in Europe.

An environmental group, Environmental Integrity Project, issued a report that says the rapidly growing industry is threatening public health on this side of the Atlantic, with enormous pellet plants using regulatory loopholes to spew substantially more pollution into the air than the law intends — a charge the industry vehemently rejects.

The problem is particularly acute in North Carolina, where pellet giant Enviva Biomass has cornered the market and runs the nation’s dirtiest pellet mill, according to the report. None of the state’s four plants deploy pollution-control devices common elsewhere, it says.

Study: The Economics of Four Virginia Biomass Plants

This link discusses the economic issues associated with burning biomass (largely wood) as an energy source. The Georgia Tech study concludes that the cost of generating energy by burning biomass is far more expensive than generating electricity from solar or wind.

ABSTRACT
Global electricity generated from biomass more than tripled between 2000 and 2016, and it is
forecast to grow at an increasing pace through 2050. Electricity generation from biomass is also
expanding in the United States, particularly in the Southeast. Given the continued growth and
policy support for biomass electricity generation, this paper assesses the economics of four
Virginia biomass plants, three converted from coal plants in 2012 and one purchased and
expanded in 2004. The goal is to estimate the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) generated from
the plants as a metric of their level of competitiveness with respect to alternative ways of
meeting electricity demand in the region. The LCOE of the four plants range from $93 to
$143/MWh, about 40-53% more expensive than new solar and wind today and is double the
cost of energy efficiency. Even with the inclusion of federal subsidies and environmental
credits, Dominion’s biomass conversions are not competitive. Overall, our analysis underscores
the risks associated with investing in large, long-lived generation assets at a time when
technologies and markets are rapidly evolving.

Here is a link to the Georgia Tech website.

The ‘Green’ Biomass Industry Pruitt Called ‘Carbon Neutral’ Uses Typical Fossil Fuel Industry Tricks to Pollute More

This article discusses the shady way that biomass incinerators pretend to be clean energy.

This past week, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt declared that the EPA would now consider burning wood and other forest products for energy as “carbon neutral,” despite his previous comments expressing doubt that carbon dioxide from human activity (and therefore carbon neutrality) is even a cause for concern. In his announcement about the carbon footprint of the biomass industry, Pruitt even went as far as to claim: “This is environmental stewardship in action.”

Not surprisingly, scientists featured in several media outlets immediately pointed out the error of his statement, and a report, released within days of Pruitt’s announcement, highlights the environmental and public health impacts of the biomass industry.

William Moomaw, a Professor of International Environmental Policy at Tufts University who holds a PhD in chemistry, was blunt in assessing what this change in policy means for the climate.

“Between this and the Europeans it means no chance of staying within the 2 degree [Celsius] limit. It’s just not possible,” Moomaw told Mashable, referencing the Paris Climate Agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C (2.7°F) or well below 2°C (3.6°F) above preindustrial levels by 2100.

Moomaw’s reference to “the Europeans” highlights the fact that Pruitt is following in the footsteps of the European Union, which has also placed bioenergy, which includes the burning of trees converted to wood pellets, in the same “renewable and carbon neutral” category as wind and solar energy. This issue has been covered in detail in “Pulp Fiction,” a 2015 Climate Central exposé of the biomass-for-energy industry.

Pruitt’s decision was welcomed by the forestry industry, which has been pushing for this “carbon neutral” classification for years and recently hired new lobbyists with old ties to Pruitt. As Inside Climate News put it: “Pruitt’s Friends Became Lobbyists, Then Handed Their Clients an EPA Biomass Win.”