The alternative energy sector is expanding quickly in the USA since passage of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. Increased interest in woodbased bioenergy has led to the need for robust modeling methods to analyze woody biomass operations at landscape scales. However, analyzing woody biomass operations in regions like the US Inland Northwest is diffi cult due to highly variable terrain and wood characteristics. We developed the Forest Residue Economic Assessment Model (FREAM) to better integrate with Geographical Information Systems and overcome analytical modeling limitations. FREAM analyzes wood-based bioenergy logistics systems and provides a modeling platform that can be readily modifi ed to analyze additional study locations. We evaluated three scenarios to test the FREAM's utility: a local-scale scenario in which a catalytic pyrolysis process produces gasoline from 181 437 Mg yr -1 of forest residues, a regional-scale scenario that assumes a biochemical process to create aviation fuel from 725 748 Mg yr -1 of forest residues, and an international scenario that assumes a pellet mill producing pellets for international markets from 272 155 Mg yr -1 of forest residues. The local scenario produced gasoline for a modeled cost of $22.33 GJ -1 *, the regional scenario produced aviation fuel for a modeled cost of $35.83 GJ -1 and the international scenario produced pellets for a modeled cost of $10.51 GJ -1 . Results show that incorporating input from knowledgeable stakeholders in the designing of a model yields positive results.
A comparison of traditional and mobile wood pellet mills found that mobile systems had higher production costs. Wildfire suppression costs have consistently exceeded British Columbia's budget set for such activities. Pelletization of excess wood for bioenergy applications has been proposed as a possible method of reducing the overall costs of fighting wildfires. In this study, a traditional pellet mill produces wood pellets from new, marginal feedstocks for $182.24 ± 24.47 tonne −1 and a mobile pellet production system produces wood pellets for $402.71 ± 24.18 tonne −1 . The traditional pellet mill produces 90,000 tonnes•yr −1 with harvest residues being collected in the forest, transported to the pellet mill, dried, chipped, pelletized and then stored. The mobile system collects harvest residues from the forest, transports them to the forest landing where the trailer-mounted mobile pellet system is established and is then ground, pelletized and dried if needed. The mobile system uses a novel high moisture pelletization system and harvest residues to heat the biomass dryer used in the system. The mobile pellet system requires 22 systems to produce 90,000 tonnes•yr −1 and each system should relocate 9 times in a year to minimize production costs related to feedstock quality and scarcity. These mobile pellet systems can allow increased forest management in forest areas at high risk for wildfires and reduce the cost of suppressing wildfires in treated areas.
Public and private initiatives are actively exploring a range of forest-based bioenergy development options in the Inland Northwest of the United States. These efforts are motivated in part by the potential to generate renewable energy while creating a market for forest residues that would facilitate hazardous fuels reduction and provide economic opportunities. Understanding stakeholders' perspectives is critical to the feasibility and long-term viability of bioenergy projects. This study presents stakeholder perspectives on forest-based bioenergy development strategies for communities in the forested areas of Idaho, western Montana, eastern Washington, and eastern Oregon. We developed three scenarios based on bioenergy initiatives currently being explored in the region: a decentralized mobile biochar and drop-in fuel scenario, a centralized bioaviation fuel scenario, and a centralized wood pellet scenario. We then asked a range of stakeholders to identify and assess the tradeoffs they associated with each scenario during in-depth interviews. Participants were generally supportive of any viable scenario that supports forest restoration and economic development, but many favored small-scale, locally oriented bioenergy development similar to what has occurred in some rural communities related to local food systems.
This paper analyzes the implications on employment, taxation, and wildfire fuel reduction costs when using mobile pellet mills to remove biomass and reduce wildfire fuels. Wildfire suppression costs in British Columbia have exceeded the set budget in 9 of the last 10 years and the province has only reduced the fuel load on a fraction of the high-risk hectares. Using a novel high-moisture mobile pellet mill allows the production of 89,000 tonnes of wood pellets each year for a price of $293 tonne −1 . Each tonne produced also provides $546 tonne −1 in additional benefits from employment, taxation, and reductions in the cost to perform fuel treatments. The presented research found that 11 employees are needed to operate a mobile pellet mill, with total employment of 242 for 22 systems across BC.
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