The energy of biomass

These larger-scale wood heating systems are significantly cleaner than wood stoves for three reasons. Unlike home woodstoves, institutional woodchip boilers have virtually no visible emissions or odors. Modern woodchip systems emit far less particulate matter (PM), an exhaust product of wood combustion known for its adverse effects on human respiratory health. Over the course of a winter season the heating plant of a 200,000 square foot wood-heated school in a cold northern climate produces about the same amount of particulate matter as five home wood stoves.

·  (8) Also Wood, chipped for fuel implies the productive use of a low-grade waste product. Wood fuel typically comes from either sawmill or timber harvesting residues. These residues are generally considered wastes or byproducts of the forest industry. Where woodchips come from sawmills, they are a waste that must be disposed of or sold. Where chips come from harvesting operations in the woods, the purpose is to remove low-grade trees from the forest that, when done sustainably, will improve overall forest health.

(9) Burning wood for energy has a positive impact in moderating global climate change. Carbon dioxide (CO₂) buildup in the atmosphere is a significant cause of global climate change. Fossil fuel combustion takes carbon that was locked away underground (as crude oil and gas) and transfers it to the atmosphere as CO₂. When wood is burned, however, it recycles carbon that was already in the natural carbon cycle. Consequently, the net effect of burning wood fuel is that no new CO₂ is added to the atmosphere.

Moving to the point four I’ like to tell you about BIOMASS POTENTIAL

(10)The potential of biomass can be considered as an example of Coos County’s  power station in  Oregon that you can see on this slide. Biomass fuel has the potential to serve the county not only as an economical way to offset fossil fuels, but also as an economic development driver that keeps energy dollars in the community and supports sustainable forest management and infrastructure. Coos County has enormous potential to use wood residues produced from existing local forest products industries as well as low-grade wood from the region’s forests. Making efficient use of local resources for biomass heat can help support these forest products industries, maintain forestlands, and enhance the quality of life for Coos County residents

(11)Economic Development

Biomass energy projects have a diversity of positive impacts on local and regional economic development: Community because biomass fuel is locally produced, harvested, and processed, its use creates and sustains jobs in the region's economy. Biomass energy keeps dollars spent on fuel in the local economy—compared with fossil fuel systems, which generally export fuel dollars. Building and maintaining biomass energy systems creates employment in the regional economy. On this slide you can see…

(12) To generate wood-residue thermal energy, forest waste (tree bark