 Producing energy does not have to threaten the environment.

In fact, its very production can reap major environmental benefits.

 The United States’ biomass power generating industry has a

powerful influence over several areas of environmental concern:
• Protecting our forests

• Improving air quality

• Reducing greenhouse emissions

• Managing waste

 Biomass power plants combust wood waste to produce electricity

— waste that would otherwise create adverse environmental
impacts.
 Biomass fuels include wood waste such as:

• Agricultural waste like orchard removals, rice hulls,

fruit pits, etc.
• Forest waste like small trees and undergrowth cleared
from forests for fire suppression and growth enhancement
• Urban wood waste like construction wood scraps, broken pallets,
clean wood waste from factories and residue from tree trimmers
 Unlike other renewable technologies, biomass plants pay to
collect, process and transport its fuels — and are more labor
intensive

 Biomass power is a reliable, renewable base load electric power

source — able to provide a steady flow of power regardless of
external conditions
 Biomass power now provides over half of America’s renewable
“green” electricity, some 8,500 MW a year — reducing our
dependence on foreign oil and providing enough electricity to
light about 8.5 million American homes

 In addition, biomass power generates ten times the number of

good-paying jobs found at the typical natural gas-fueled facility

 America’s biopower industry provides some 14,000 quality jobs

and generates about $1 billion a year for the nation’s economy

 Each biomass power plant contributes about $8 – 14 million

annually to the local communities where they operate in payroll,
purchases and property tax revenue
 Improves the Health of Our Forests
• Removing about 68.8 million tons of forest waste annually,
reducing the threat of forest fires that endanger lives and
property, and contribute to air pollution and GHG emissions
 Provides Waste Disposal Alternatives
• Diverts about 36.2 million tons of urban wood waste from
landfills annually

 Reduces Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions

• At least 2 times more effective in reducing GHG
emissions than any other type of renewable technology

 Reduces Criteria Pollutants

• Biomass plants cut criteria pollutants as a result of carefully
controlled combustion in biomass boilers
 Biomass Power is Carbon Neutral
• When plants and trees grow they absorb carbon, and when
they die they release carbon — as part of nature
• When organic matter is used as a fuel, it is utilizing existing
carbon — adding no new carbon to the atmosphere — it is
carbon neutral

 Fossil Fuel Power “Creates” New Carbon

• Fossil fuels (which “contain” carbon) are
trapped beneath the ground, inaccessible
to the atmosphere
• Accessed and used fossil fuels release
new carbon into the atmosphere
Biomass Also Provides GHG Reductions
 The amount of biomass in the forest grows or declines over
time — sequestering or releasing net carbon to the atmosphere.
This balance of carbon matters. How biomass returns to the
atmosphere also matters.

 Carbon is returned to the atmosphere in the form of carbon dioxide

(CO2) and methane (CH4). Methane is 25 times more potent as a
GHG.
 Biomass power plants efficiently combust the methane
and eliminate it entirely, emitting all the biomass
carbon in the form of CO2.

 All disposal alternatives — open burning,

landfilling and decomposing in the open
— produce a damaging mix of the two.
 Biomass is at least 2x more effective in
reducing GHG emissions than any other
type of renewable technology, or nuclear
 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions for biomass (and biogass) are “negative”
compared to others due to avoidance of landfill disposal and other polluting alternatives
 A clean, renewable alternative to fossil fuel plants

 Diverts about 36.2 million tons of urban wood waste from landfills
each year

 Has a net negative impact on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions

• Diverting waste from high-emission conventional disposal like
landfill disposal and agricultural field burning, actually reduces
GHG emissions
• Will help California and other states meet mandated
GHG reductions
 The biomass power industry grew rapidly during the 1980s
and early 1990s

 Biomass power generation in the U.S. grew 70% each year

between 1990 and 1994 — reaching 59,000 gigawatt-hours
in 1994. [American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 1997]

 More than 100 biomass power plants are connected to the

electricity grid in the U.S. today

 Biomass energy is growing rapidly and now accounts for 45%

of the renewable energy used in the U.S. [NRDC]
Congress should promote our successful biomass industry by:

 Extending the expiring Production Tax Credit (PTC) for existing

plants, set to expire 12/31/09

 Provide biomass with tax equity or “parity” compared to other

renewable technologies

 Recognize existing plants in a federal RES and adopt a broad

definition of biomass

 Eliminate tax exempt financing and other credits discount

 Various technical clarifications related to H.R. 1424