Renewable Energy from Forest Residues—How Greenhouse Gas Emission Offsets Can Make Fossil Fuel Substitution More Attractive

Abstract

Burning forest biomass from renewable sources has been suggested as a viable strategy to help offset greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the energy generation sector. Energy facilities can, in principle, be retrofitted to produce a portion of their energy from biomass. However, supply uncertainties affect costs, and are an important impediment to widespread and sustained adoption of this strategy. In this paper, we describe a general approach to assess the cost of offsetting GHG emissions at co-generation facilities by replacing two common fossil fuels, coal and natural gas, with forest harvest residue biomass for heat and electricity production. We apply the approach to a Canadian case study that identifies the price of GHG offsets that could make the use of forest residue biomass feedstock attractive. Biomass supply costs were based on a geographical assessment of industrial harvest operations in Canadian forests, biomass extraction and transportation costs, and included representation of basic ecological sustainability and technical accessibility constraints. Sensitivity analyses suggest that biomass extraction costs have the largest impact on the costs of GHG emission offsets, followed by fossil fuel prices. In the context of other evaluations of mitigation strategies in the energy generation sector, such as afforestation or industrial carbon capture, this analysis suggests that the substitution of fossil fuels by forest residue biomass could be a viable and reasonably substantive short-term alternative under appropriate GHG emission pricing schemes.

Analysis of Selected Physical Properties of Conifer Cones with Relevance to Energy Production Efficiency

“…Further sources of forest biomass are sought; for example, forest undergrowth is harvested and processed into pellets [9]. An additional factor favoring various types of forest residue biomass for heat and electricity production is the opportunity to offset greenhouse gas emissions, which could make biomass use more economically viable [10].…”

Salvage harvesting for bioenergy in Canada: From sustainable and integrated supply chain to climate change mitigation

“…The development of local district energy system represents one potential way to reduce heating costs especially in remote off‐grid communities and allowing for important savings on the costs associated with transporting biomass over long distances (Stephen et al, ) Utilizing biomass in an innovative manner and factoring in the cost of GHG substitution may also bring new insights and added incentives. If the market for GHG emission offsets is established with a competitive price, the benefits of offsetting GHG emissions could be factored into the cost of salvaging woody biomass for bioenergy, making the required investment more profitable (Yemshanov, McKenney, Hope, & Lempriere, ).…”

Greenhouse Gas Emission Offsets of Forest Residues for Bioenergy in Queensland, Australia

“…Forest residues are a sustainable source of bioenergy, involving the use of a by-product to replace fossil fuel alternatives, with the potential to lead to GHG emission savings [21]. Recent international studies have explored forest residue bioenergy and found several possible benefits, including emission reductions, and regional development opportunities in northern Spain [22], northern Italy [23], Canada [24], and the United States [25].…”