Friday, December 18, 2009

By Stan Freeman

In a public hearing at the Holiday Inn here, details were offered of a landmark research study that will try to gauge the impacts of biomass energy on the climate as well as on the forests of Massachusetts.

With three proposals for industrial-scale wood-burning power plants in the Pioneer Valley, in Springfield, Greenfield and Russell, the six-month study was commissioned in November by the state Department of Energy Resources. It will be conducted by the Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences, a non-profit research center based in Plymouth.

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The two-hour hearing, which was attended by about 200 people, was anticipated to be contentious. However, it remained civil as the ecologists, biologists and others involved in the study outlined what key questions they will try to answer in the research.

When trees are growing, they absorb carbon dioxide, a primary greenhouse gas. But when wood is burned, carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere. In what circumstances is the net contribution of carbon to the atmosphere minimal?

Thomas Walker, a natural resource economist who will be the overall project manager for the study, said, "Initially, there was a view that biomass is a renewable fuel and that automatically, it must be good for climate change. More recently, that view has begun to change."

Newer studies are finding that the carbon contribution of biomass depends on how a biomass plant is operated - how the wood is harvested, what kind of technology is used and what kind of fuel biomass energy is replacing, he said.

"You can't really generalize about this. It depends very much on the specifics of your situation," Walker said. "And no one (has studied the issues for) Massachusetts and essentially, that is what we're proposing to look at."

The plants in Russell and Greenfield plan to burn so-called clean wood, which is generally wood scraps and cut wood from logging operations. The plant in Springfield had planned to burn construction and demolition debris as well as some clean wood.

Last week, the state suspended the review of permit applications for facilities proposing to burn construction and demolition debris to create energy, until an environmental impact assessment is completed.

Two weeks ago, the state suspended consideration of applications by biomass plants for renewable energy credits, which are considered critical to the financing of the plants, until the Manomet study is completed. That decision affected the plants in Russell and Greenfield. Developers of the plant in Springfield have not applied for the credits.

In a public hearing at the Holiday Inn here, details were offered of a landmark research study that will try to gauge the impacts of biomass energy on the climate as well as on the forests of Massachusetts.

With three proposals for industrial-scale wood-burning power plants in the Pioneer Valley, in Springfield, Greenfield and Russell, the six-month study was commissioned in November by the state Department of Energy Resources. It will be conducted by the Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences, a non-profit research center based in Plymouth.

"I think most of us agree that the issue of climate change is the defining issue of our time and may be the defining issue for the well-being of generations to come. It's critically important that we get the facts right," said John Hagan, the president of the center.

The two-hour hearing, which was attended by about 200 people, was anticipated to be contentious. However, it remained civil as the ecologists, biologists and others involved in the study outlined what key questions they will try to answer in the research.

When trees are growing, they absorb carbon dioxide, a primary greenhouse gas. But when wood is burned, carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere. In what circumstances is the net contribution of carbon to the atmosphere minimal?

Thomas Walker, a natural resource economist who will be the overall project manager for the study, said, "Initially, there was a view that biomass is a renewable fuel and that automatically, it must be good for climate change. More recently, that view has begun to change."

Newer studies are finding that the carbon contribution of biomass depends on how a biomass plant is operated - how the wood is harvested, what kind of technology is used and what kind of fuel biomass energy is replacing, he said.

"You can't really generalize about this. It depends very much on the specifics of your situation," Walker said. "And no one (has studied the issues for) Massachusetts and essentially, that is what we're proposing to look at."

The plants in Russell and Greenfield plan to burn so-called clean wood, which is generally wood scraps and cut wood from logging operations. The plant in Springfield had planned to burn construction and demolition debris as well as some clean wood.

Last week, the state suspended the review of permit applications for facilities proposing to burn construction and demolition debris to create energy, until an environmental impact assessment is completed.

Two weeks ago, the state suspended consideration of applications by biomass plants for renewable energy credits, which are considered critical to the financing of the plants, until the Manomet study is completed. That decision affected the plants in Russell and Greenfield. Developers of the plant in Springfield have not applied for the credits.

In a public hearing at the Holiday Inn here, details were offered of a landmark research study that will try to gauge the impacts of biomass energy on the climate as well as on the forests of Massachusetts.

With three proposals for industrial-scale wood-burning power plants in the Pioneer Valley, in Springfield, Greenfield and Russell, the six-month study was commissioned in November by the state Department of Energy Resources. It will be conducted by the Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences, a non-profit research center based in Plymouth.

"I think most of us agree that the issue of climate change is the defining issue of our time and may be the defining issue for the well-being of generations to come. It's critically important that we get the facts right," said John Hagan, the president of the center.

The two-hour hearing, which was attended by about 200 people, was anticipated to be contentious. However, it remained civil as the ecologists, biologists and others involved in the study outlined what key questions they will try to answer in the research.

When trees are growing, they absorb carbon dioxide, a primary greenhouse gas. But when wood is burned, carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere. In what circumstances is the net contribution of carbon to the atmosphere minimal?

Thomas Walker, a natural resource economist who will be the overall project manager for the study, said, "Initially, there was a view that biomass is a renewable fuel and that automatically, it must be good for climate change. More recently, that view has begun to change."

Newer studies are finding that the carbon contribution of biomass depends on how a biomass plant is operated - how the wood is harvested, what kind of technology is used and what kind of fuel biomass energy is replacing, he said.

"You can't really generalize about this. It depends very much on the specifics of your situation," Walker said. "And no one (has studied the issues for) Massachusetts and essentially, that is what we're proposing to look at."

The plants in Russell and Greenfield plan to burn so-called clean wood, which is generally wood scraps and cut wood from logging operations. The plant in Springfield had planned to burn construction and demolition debris as well as some clean wood.

Last week, the state suspended the review of permit applications for facilities proposing to burn construction and demolition debris to create energy, until an environmental impact assessment is completed.

Two weeks ago, the state suspended consideration of applications by biomass plants for renewable energy credits, which are considered critical to the financing of the plants, until the Manomet study is completed. That decision affected the plants in Russell and Greenfield. Developers of the plant in Springfield have not applied for the credits.

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