Should Biomass-Fired Power Receive Incentives?

Debate is stirring nationwide over the environmental credibility of biomass-fired power.

Fueling power plants with waste from the lumber industry is technically carbon neutral, but according to a report in the Oregonian, even with the most advanced pollution control devices in place, it releases more carbon dioxide and particulate matter than a comparable-sized coal-fired plant.

As a result, environmentalists in Massachusetts, Oregon and 16 other states are questioning whether biomass should receive the same favorable incentives as other renewable energy sources–especially as power companies are beginning to convert more generating facilities to biomass.

One concern centers on tallying of US carbon dioxide emissions. The story states that carbon-neutral biomass emissions, would not be included in the US total. Such figures would give the appearance of reduced US emissions, although measurements of actualy carbon dioxide in the atmosphere would not be decreased. 

Read the full story at the link below.