We are surrounded by biomass. Tree trimmings, grass cuttings, manure, left over cornstalks, other farm wastes and even municipal garbage are all biomass resources that can be tapped for energy. With recent oil and natural gas price spikes the idea of using biomass as a fuel has gained strength. However, consumers and policymakers should understand that biomass is not a monolithic energy source the way oil, coal and natural gas are. It is not a fungible fuel that can be transported around the world in tankers and pipelines. Instead, it is a niche energy source with local applications that has the potential to make a meaningful contribution to the global energy supply.
 | CARE'S POSITION |  |
CARE supports continued research and development of biomass with one caveat: Large-scale biomass projects should not be undertaken unless they are self-sustaining with a verifiable energy profit (creating more energy than is consumed). It is not responsible public policy make the taxpayers pick up the tab for energy projects that don’t actually improve the nation’s overall energy situation. For example, ethanol production is a taxpayer-subsidized fuel that does not return a viable energy profit. The future of biomass appears to be in niche applications, such as when dairy farmers capture methane from decomposing manure and use it to heat and power their facilities, thereby reducing their natural gas demand. Biomass energy makes the most sense when it enables users to exploit resources that would otherwise be wasted.
| Facts | |
• Plants take in carbon dioxide and through photosynthesis, turn it into cellulose, simple sugars, and other carbohydrates
• Biomass is abundant—some studies show that the energy potential of earth’s terrestrial biomass is 100 times the world’s total annual energy use
• Biomass constituted about 2.7% of total US energy consumption in 2004—equivalent to more than 1.5 million barrels of oil per day
• Forestry and agricultural waste, tree and yard trimmings, animal manure and even municipal garbage are some types of biomass
• The US currently has 89 plants that burn garbage to generate 0.3 percent of the nation’s electricity—roughly equivalent to two 1000 megawatt fossil fuel or nuclear power plants
• So-called “energy crops” such as eucalyptus trees can be grown as sources of biomass energy
• Brazil derives nearly one-quarter of its energy needs from biomass
• Nearly all of the fuels and chemicals manufactured from fossil fuels can be made from biomass feedstocks—the key factor is whether or not these can be cost-competitive with fossil fuel products
| How It's Used | |
Biomass energy can be used in four different ways:
o It can be directly burned to drive a steam turbine and produce electricity
o Manure and other substances can undergo bacterial decay and produce methane gas
o Corn and grains can be fermented to produce ethanol
o Heat and chemical processes can be used to convert biomass into liquid biofuels.
| Pros | |
• Unlike other renewable energy sources, biomass can provide liquid fuels that are compatible with much of the current energy production and distribution infrastructure
• Using biomass energy sources can reduce net greenhouse gas emissions
• Biomass and biofuels are low in sulfur, which causes acid rain
• Biomass fuel and biofuels are all domestically produced, making them more secure
• Biomass energy projects can potentially revive rural economies and create new jobs
• In ideal circumstances biomass can make a significant contribution to a country’s energy supply; Brazil for example is one of the world’s largest sugarcane growers and uses a sizeable portion of its crop to economically produce ethanol motor fuel
| Cons | |
• Biomass is inefficient because plants and trees convert only 1-3% of the sun’s energy into usable fuel, and even less of this heat value can actually be recovered by burning.
• Co-firing power plants with coal and biomass mixed together can damage pollution control equipment because biomass emissions contain alkaline substances
• Until major technical breakthroughs occur, biomass and biofuels will be unable to reduce demand for petroleum-based liquid fuels.
• Producing biofuels requires large areas of cropland
• Until the process becomes self-sufficient, biofuel production will still require large amounts of oil to run farm machinery, make pesticides and fertilizers, and get fuel to market
| The Future | |
At the current time, biomass is primarily employed as an “opportunity fuel” that can be burned instead of discarded. The use of manure and farm waste as a fuel in the developing world is a good example of this.
Yet as technology improves and fossil fuel costs rise, biomass may become a more important global energy source. Some scientists estimate that thermochemical processing of a wide range of waste biomass feedstocks can produce fuel ethanol and other alcohols at production costs one-quarter to one-half the cost of fermentation ethanol from corn. This would be competitive with existing petroleum fuels, although significant market and infrastructure changes might be required. Nearly all of the fuels and chemicals manufactured from fossil fuels can be made from biomass feedstocks. However, efficiency must be greatly improved before biomass is cost-competitive with fossil fuels.
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